BanCoppel buys Banco Famsa loan book; BTG launches digital retail bank

TOP NEWS IN LATIN AMERICAN BANKING & FINANCIAL SERVICES

* Mexico-based BanCoppel SA Institución de Banca Múltiple acquired a business loan portfolio worth 2.70 billion pesos from Banco Ahorro Famsa SA Institución de Banca Múltiple, El Economista reported. Banco Ahorro Famsa is undergoing liquidation after its banking license was revoked in 2020.

* Brazil's Banco BTG Pactual SA launched its BTG+ digital retail bank to the public, four months after its pre-release last September 2020, when it was made available to those already registered on the BTG Pactual Digital investment platform, Valor Econômico reported.

➤ Brazil's economic recovery, credit risk under threat amid slow vaccine progress

Brazil spent heavily to lessen the country's economic recession and set it up for a quicker recovery. But now, experts say the effects of those efforts could fade amid a second wave of COVID-19 infections and slow progress in vaccine distribution.

➤ Asian central banks set for holding pattern in 2021 with rates at record lows

Central banks across the Asia-Pacific broadly kept their monetary policies unchanged in the 2020 fourth quarter and are largely set to sit tight this year, though market observers say some emerging markets could still see interest rates dip further.

BANKING

* Brazil's Banco BS2 SA will launch an international digital account for companies on Jan. 26, Valor Econômico reported. The accounts come without maintenance costs and will allow instant currency conversion and credit card operations, among others.

* Mexico's CNBV banking and securities commission plans to modify the guidelines for the supervisory visitation of financial entities, including the duration of these visits, which should not exceed six months, El Economista reported. The CNBV supervises about 5,000 financial entities.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* Economic activity in Brazil increased 0.59% in November from the previous month on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the central bank's IBC-Br economic activity index.

* Analysts at Fitch Solutions said Latin American recovery will be "modest" this year at 3.5%, up from a contraction of 7.7% in 2020, Diario Financiero reported. Chile's economy is seen to rebound to a growth of 4.2% in 2021 after a contraction of 6% last year.

MARKETS

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Pablo Jiménez Arandia contributed to this report.

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