TOP NEWS IN LATIN AMERICAN BANKING & FINANCIAL SERVICES
* Mexican antitrust regulator Cofece announced fines totaling 35 million pesos, or about $1.75 million, on seven banks and 11 traders for manipulation and collusion in the government bond market between 2010 and 2013. Banco Santander México SA, one of the banks that was fined, said it will seek legal means and dispute the allegations with federal courts.
* Brazil-based boutique investment bank BR Partners will relaunch its IPO plans and could file for the offering as soon as Jan. 26, CEO Ricardo Lacerda said. The company shelved the plan in September 2020 due to market volatility.
➤ US community banks face near-term pain but brighter days in sight
While U.S. community banks face earnings headwinds in the short term, the expected hit from rising credit costs is now much smaller than previously expected.
➤ Drug prices continue to climb after year of COVID-19, economic disruption
Despite a pandemic and economic recession, pharmaceutical companies have raised the price of more generic and brand name drugs in the first few weeks of the new year than in each of the previous two years.
BANKING
* The Mexican banking sector increased its holdings of government securities by 72% year over year in 2020, despite cuts to the country's benchmark interest rate, Reforma reported, citing central bank data.
* Brazilian development bank Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social's divestment policy is part of a strategic repositioning and will continue in 2021, Valor Econômico reported, citing finance director Bianca Nasser. Stake sales carried out by BNDES in 2020 resulted in an accounting profit and contributed to third-quarter profitability last year, the director said.
POLICY AND REGULATION
* Brazil's central bank revoked the authorization to operate for Banco da Produção do Estado de Alagoas, formally closing a liquidation process that began in 1988, Valor Econômico reported.
* Peruvian banking and insurance regulator SBS published a new regulatory framework under which it will look to expedite the approval process for mergers and new entrants in the financial sector. It established time limits for the processes, in some cases up to 120 business days maximum, and outlined the information applicants must submit.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* European Union states reiterated their stance that they can no longer legally recognize Juan Guaido as Venezuela's interim president after he lost his head of parliament position in December 2020 legislative elections.
* Economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean will not return to pre-pandemic levels before the end of 2023, according to a United Nations report. Real GDP in the region is expected to have dropped by 8% in 2020 and its recovery "will likely remain fragile and uneven, with significant political risks and the possibility of a debt crisis looming in several countries," the organization said.
MARKETS
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Pablo Jiménez Arandia contributed to this report.
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