UPDATE 1-Brazilian lender Itau acquires digital broker Ideal

(Adds CEO quote, deal details, context)

SAO PAULO, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Brazilian lender Itau Unibanco Holding SA said on Thursday it had reached a deal to acquire digital broker Ideal, in its first move in the brokerage sector after divesting its stake in rival XP Inc.

Itau will pay about 650 million reais ($117 million) for a 50.1% stake in Ideal, which includes the acquisition of new shares and a new investment. It will have the right to acquire the remaining 49.9% stake after five years.

Founded in 2019, Ideal provides infrastructure for electronic trading and direct market access to investors.

Itau said the acquisition would enable it to offer a broker service to third parties and enhance its financial products distribution. It said it was considering having independent financial advisers as partners, similar to XP's business model.

Itau Chief Executive Milton Maluhy said in a statement Ideal would improve the bank's offering via different channels. "Clients from different segments, like iti or Itau Corretora, will be able to access the same products through the platforms they prefer," he added.

Itau said Ideal would operate as a separate entity.

Itau acquired a 49.9% stake in XP in 2018 and planned to take control later, but the central bank barred the deal for antitrust reasons. Itau gave its shares in XP directly to its shareholders mainly to avoid potential conflicts of interest.

($1 = 5.5338 reais) (Reporting by Carolina Mandl and Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Jason Neely and Edmund Blair)