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Chile, Honduras decide presidents; prosecutors look to replace Caixa VPs

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Chile, Honduras decide presidents; prosecutors look to replace Caixa VPs

* Electoral authorities in Chile declared former president Sebastian Piñera the winner of presidential elections held Dec. 17, Reuters reported. Pinera captured 54.58% of the votes compared to 45.42% for center-left rival Alejandro Guillier.

* The Honduran electoral tribunal declared Juan Orlando Hernandez, the country's incumbent president, the winner of a contentious Nov. 26 presidential election, Reuters reported. However, the declaration triggered new accusations of electoral fraud, and the Organization of American States said the country should schedule a new presidential vote.

* Prosecutors in Brazil have called on state-run Caixa Econômica Federal to replace all of its 12 vice presidents over suspected "irregularities," Reuters reported, citing a document. The prosecutors also asked that the bank improve its process for appointing high-ranking executives. A spokesman for the bank said it would "respond formally [to the prosecutors] in accordance with the legal deadline."

MEXICO AND CENTRAL AMERICA

* A congressional delay in approving Mexico's fintech regulatory law could be an opportunity to fine-tune certain aspects of the bill, including capital requirements and operational limits, Juan Carlos Flores Acevedo, CEO of the Doopla peer-to-peer lending platform, told El Economista.

BRAZIL

* Banco Indusval SA booked a net loss of 74.9 million reais for the third quarter, compared to a net loss of 28.2 million reais in the year-ago period. Provision expenses jumped to 63.6 million reais from 28.2 million reais a year earlier.

* BR Insurance Corretora de Seguros SA's shareholders approved the incorporation of six brokerage firms as part of an internal restructuring that will result in a single company. The company said it will implement a capital increase in which its capital stock will rise to about 379.0 million reais.

* Fitch Ratings downgraded Banco Original SA's long-term national rating to BBB(bra) from BBB+(bra), reflecting the bank's relative weakened position locally due to significant pressures on profitability and asset quality since 2016.

* Itaú Unibanco Holding SA approved a new buyback program authorizing the repurchase of up to 28,616,649 common shares and 50 million preferred shares. The new program takes effect from Dec. 20. The company also canceled 31,793,105 common shares acquired through an auction earlier in December.

* Personal loans are the most common credit line sought by Brazilian borrowers online, Valor Econômico reported, citing a report by credit research firm Boa Vista SCPC. It found that 69% of users of digital banking and fintech platforms sought personal loans.

* Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social aims to conclude debt reprogramming talks with 14 state governments by Dec. 22, Folha de S.Paulo reported. The debts being renegotiated total some 8.2 billion reais.

ANDEAN

* Ohio National Seguros de Vida SA said Paul Staines resigned as vice chairman of the board. Staines had been in the position since January 2016.

* Peruvian lawmakers launched impeachment proceedings against President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski over allegations that he received bribes from Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht, according to media reports. Luis Galarreta, the president of Peru's Congress, reportedly said Kuczynski could be ousted within a week as opposition parties have enough seats to deliver the needed votes for his removal.

* A rebound in private investment in Peru is unlikely for now due to current political uncertainty linked to an opposition bid to impeach President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, Jaime Reusche, vice president and senior analyst at Moody's, told El Comercio.

SOUTHERN CONE

* Banco de Servicios Financieros SA said it will offer simple negotiable obligations for up to 250.0 million Argentine pesos, expandable up to 500.0 million pesos, on Dec. 19. The class 20 notes will carry a variable rate and have a term of 18 months.

* Banco Finansur SA said Raúl Omar Planes resigned as vice chairman of its board due to personal reasons. On Jan. 11, 2018, shareholders will vote on the removal of Jorge Berro Madero and Patricio Carballes as directors, the bank said.

* Banco Central de Chile announced a set of measures to boost dollar liquidity in foreign exchange markets, including offerings of dollar currency swaps for up to $500 million and repurchase agreements in Chilean pesos, Reuters reported.

* Uruguayan central bank president Mario Bergara warned that the country's budget deficit needs to start falling in 2018 to avert the risk of a credit ratings downgrade, El Observador reported. Uruguay's fiscal deficit was 3.5% of GDP in the 12 months ending October 2017, 1 percentage point than the government's target.

* Chile's central bank has enlisted its former president and current Banco Santander Chile president Vittorio Corbo Lioi and other executives to help it defend a ban on strike action by its staff, Pulso reported. The union representing central bank employees is seeking to reverse the bank's status as a strategic company, meaning strikes are not allowed.

IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

* Asia-Pacific: ANZ to buy back up to A$1.5B of shares; ICICI Securities files for IPO

* Middle East & Africa: South Africa's ANC to have new leader; Arab Bank chair released from detention

* Europe: Fitch upgrades Portugal, Ireland; France eyes cap on banks' corporate exposures

Helen Popper contributed to this article.

The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 8 a.m. São Paulo time, and scans news sources published in English, Portuguese and Spanish. Some external links may require a subscription.