February 1st saw the commencement of the first of four phases of Brazil’s Open Banking implementation, with the country formally seeking to modernize its financial sector. Led by the Brazilian central bank, Open Banking seeks to encourage higher levels of banking competition, as well as boost financial education throughout the country, and similar to open banking initiatives in other countries, it will largely utilise open application programming interfaces (APIs) to allow third-party developers to build applications and services based on approved consumer data from financial institutions.
Through the expansion of foreign currency bank accounts, Venezuela recently took a major step in its efforts to “dollarize” its troubled economy. “The opening of bank accounts at all levels in convertible currencies, in dollars, is being authorized,” President Nicolas Maduro said during his annual address to the nation in mid-January. The Venezuelan leader has also proposed the widespread use of debit cards connected to such accounts, as although local banks do currently offer US dollar accounts, transactions remain limited in the absence of a clearing system that would enable the interbank wire transfer of funds.
As cryptocurrency markets heat up once again, several Colombian banks have reportedly teamed up with some of the biggest crypto exchanges in the country to begin work on a cryptoasset transactions pilot project. According to local media outlets, the project will mainly involve the exchanges partnering with individual banks to test how financial institutions can use digital assets to conduct transactions, and whether such transactions can be improved in terms of speed and efficiency.
The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) recently confirmed that its plans to sell the bulk of its Caribbean business was turned down by local regulators and will not proceed, thus representing another conflict which a Canadian lender has had with Caribbean authorities in attempting to lower their exposure to the region. November 2019 saw CIBC announce its US$797 million deal to sell around two-thirds of its Barbados-based FirstCaribbean International Bank to GNB Financial Group. But on February 3rd, FirstCaribbean’s regulators rejected the proposed deal, with many attributing the decision to their concerns over ensuring long-term financial stability, particularly in the midst of the pandemic.
For US banks, it would appear that the fourth and final quarter of 2020 was its strongest of the year. Although full year net income for most banks underperformed compared with the previous two years, Fitch Ratings notes that 4Q20 reported earnings was the strongest of the year thanks mainly to the recapture of reserves set aside for future credit losses. That said, the sector did report a sequential rise in non-performing loans for the quarter, although credit loss rates remained low and are likely to do so for some time following the fiscal stimulus measures approved in December, as well as another likely round of stimulus due to be approved imminently. “We expect core earnings, to be challenged during 2021 due to the persistently low-rate environment and nominal loan demand,” said Bain Rumohr, Fitch’s Senior Director for North American Banks. “However, US banks have generally exhibited financial and operational resilience in what has been a challenging operating environment, a catalyst for our Stable sector outlook for the year.”
According to S&P Global Ratings, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the digital transformations being undertaken by Canadian banks. Canadian banks’ dominant market position will likely help them to fend off fintech challengers in the near term, the ratings agency recently observed, although the regulatory environment continues to evolve and become more accommodative to new market players. “Fintech adoption is largely bank-driven, as Canadian banks are steadily adapting to the new digital environment by implementing digital offerings and adhering to updated regulations, although at a slower pace than international peers,” S&P notes.
Mexico’s antitrust watchdog fined seven global banks a total of $1.75 million (35 million pesos) after finding conclusive evidence of price-rigging in the peso bond market during the early 2010s. The ruling comes after a 4-year investigation by antitrust commission Cofece which was aided by a whistle-blower who came forward in May 2015, according to documents which also revealed that investigators found evidence of cartel behaviour in the secondary market in electronic chats from 2010 to 2013. Deutsche Bank, Barclays, Bank of America, Citigroup’s local unit Citibanamex, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Banco Santander Mexico and JPMorgan Chase were fined just 4% of the potential 680 million total that they could have faced. Of those seven banks, Deutsche Bank and Barclays received the biggest fines of 8.7 million pesos and 6.35 million pesos respectively, while eleven traders were fined a total of 5.7 million pesos out of a possible 108.5 million pesos.
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Mr. David Zalman
Prosperity Bank (United States)
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PNC Bank (United States)
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Banco Santander México
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Banco de Costa Rica (BCR)
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Banco Santander México
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Morgan Stanley
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Scotiabank
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CIBC (Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce)
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Banreservas
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Banco G&T Continental
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National Commercial Bank Jamaica
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First Citizens
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PNC Bank
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Mr. Eduardo Ebensperger Orrego
Banco de Chile
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Santander Brasil
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Grupo Bancolombia
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BTG Pactual
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Banca de Inversión Bancolombia
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Banco Galicia
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BancoSol
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Santander Brasil
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GBTI
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Banco Continental
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Banco de Credito del Peru (BCP)
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BBVA Uruguay
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Itaú Private Bank
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Banco de Chile
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Banco Nación
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Banco BISA
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Banco de Brasilia
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Banco de Chile
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Banco Davivienda
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Produbanco
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Produbanco
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Demerara Bank
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Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP)
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Banco República