Santander Securities Puerto Rico office to close May 25
The move is part of Santander Securities’ shift from a sales and advice, to a service-only model.
By José Carmona
Special to News is my Business
This week, Santander Securities LLC (SSLLC), the investment division of Banco Santander, sent a letter to its clients in Puerto Rico notifying them that, as of May 25, 2018, the Santander Securities branch in San Juan will close to the public.
Though closed the public, the SSLLC San Juan branch will remain in place after May 25 and will continue to employ a minimal staff, Ann Davis, senior manager of external communications at Santander Corporate Communications office in Boston, said in a press release, adding this move does not impact the operations at Banco Santander Puerto Rico in any way.
As previously reported, SSLLC back in December communicated to its Puerto Rico clients its decision to shift, from a sales and advice, to a service-only model, laying off six of its financial consultants in the process.
Closing the SSLLC San Juan branch to the public on May 25 is part of that transition, Davis said.
“This will be the third letter SSLLC has sent to its Puerto Rico clients in 2018, keeping them informed of these changes and notifying them that SSLLC in Puerto Rico is no longer offering investment advice,” Davis indicated.
According to Davis, since December SSLLC has been assisting clients as they make decisions regarding their investment accounts. Many clients who need investment advice have already transferred their accounts to another financial services provider.
“Accounts remaining open after May 25, 2018, will be transferred to the Santander Investments Direct (SID) team in Boston, MA, where customers will receive services to include cash movement, distributions, dividend reinvestments, cash disbursements, and trades that customers direct SSLLC to facilitate,” Davis said in a written statement.
Previous to the December announcement, the offices of Santander Securities in Puerto Rico experienced a marked reduction of its operations on the island, following the downgrade of Puerto Rico government issued bonds to junk, or non-investment grade, in 2014.
