Popular Mortgage closed 10,000 new mortgages and refinancing loans in Puerto Rico last year, representing about $1.5 billion for the bank that as a result locked down a market share of about 30 percent for 2012, financial institution officials said Thursday.
UBS Puerto Rico executives announced Wednesday the creation of the U.S. Municipal & Income Fund Inc., an additional investment alternative to its existing portfolio of funds.
Saying the bank is “here to grow,” Santander Puerto Rico President Román Blanco-Reinosa outlined the financial institution’s strategy through 2015 — a plan that calls for achieving a net profit of $100 million in three years by focusing on five core business areas. When that vision is translated into numbers, it adds up to 100x35.
Oriental Financial Group Inc. reported Thursday net income of $14.6 million for 2012, equal to $0.35 per common share results, and is predicting a strong 2013 attributed to its acquisition of BBVA Puerto Rico, which “has created a larger, diversified and growth oriented banking platform.”
Doral Bank is looking to expand its participation in Puerto Rico’s insurance market by adding new coverage options via its Doral Insurance division, said Jesús Méndez, recently appointed executive vice president of operations.
First BanCorp., parent company for FirstBank Puerto Rico reported net income of $29.8 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2012, a significant improvement compared to the net loss of $82.2 million for the same period in 2011.
Popular Inc. reported net income of $83.9 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2012, nearly twice the $47.2 million in net income reported for the prior quarter ended Sept. 30, 2012.
VIG Mortgage will expand its business footprint on and beyond the Puerto Rican territory this year, investing some $200,000 to open a branch in Orlando and two more on the island, company officials said Tuesday.
Fitch Ratings announced Thursday it had completed its review of four rated Puerto Rican Banks — Doral Financial Corp., First BanCorp, Popular Inc. and Santander Bancorp — adjusting and affirming its ratings and outlook for each financial institution.
Oriental Financial Group Inc. announced Wednesday plans for the integration of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Puerto Rico, which Oriental acquired in late December, and the combined companies’ branding and business strategy.
Fitch Ratings expects Puerto Rican banks to face continuing operating challenges in 2013, despite recent efforts by those institutions to build capital and de-risk their balance sheets, the agency said in a statement issued Wednesday.
Banco Popular recently awarded $14 million in financing to float the future “Salud Eterna” project in Humacao, a complex that will house several medical offices as well as an assisted living facility for the elderly.
The Puerto Rico Bankers Association and the New York Federal Reserve Bank recently announced the winners of the 2012 “Puerto Rico Financial Awareness Video Contest,” which drew participation from 122 students from 19 universities. The competitors submitted 19 videos aimed at encouraging financial skills and responsibility among our youth.
With just two weeks to go before Christmas, many consumers are looking for safer and more efficient ways to shop. At this time of the year, it is particularly important to practice financial responsibility and to take precautions to ensure secure transactions
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