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Colombia election set for runoff; Banrisul files for card payment unit IPO

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Colombia election set for runoff; Banrisul files for card payment unit IPO

* Colombia's presidential election is headed to a runoff after no candidate received a majority in the first round of voting to succeed Juan Manuel Santos, exit polling indicated. With almost 98% of polling stations reporting, Iván Duque led with 39% of the vote, as expected, while Gustavo Petro was a distant second with 25.08%, Reuters reported. They will meet in a second round scheduled for June 17.

* Banco do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul SA said it has filed for an initial public offering of preferred shares issued by card payment unit Banrisul Cartões SA. The unit's shares will be listed under the "level 1" corporate governance segment of Brazil's stock exchange. The bank said it will not hold any of the subsidiary's preferred shares once the offering is concluded.

MEXICO AND CENTRAL AMERICA

* Panama and China will launch negotiations for a free trade agreement in July, Reuters reported, citing Augusto Arosemena, Panama's trade and industry minister.

* Mexican savings and loan cooperative Caja Popular Mexicana is preparing to join the country's SPEI electronic interbank payment system in August, when it also plans to launch a digital application, El Economista reported, citing a company spokesperson.

CARIBBEAN

* The EU removed the Bahamas and Saint Kitts and Nevis from its list of tax havens after they pledged to address concerns over their tax practices, the European Council said. Both countries were moved to a list of jurisdictions that have sufficiently committed to reforming their tax policies but are still under careful monitoring.

BRAZIL

* Financial technology firm Creditas Soluções Financeiras Ltda. is seeking central bank approval to operate as a bank, a move that would grant the company greater autonomy in operating its products and services and lower its costs, Reuters reported, citing CEO Sergio Furio.

* Brazil's national monetary council has updated regulations governing the investments of closed pension funds, including adding greater accountability for managers and reducing the limit for investments in equity funds, Valor Econômico reported.

* Demand for consumer credit in Brazil fell 0.7% in April from the previous month on a seasonally adjusted basis, but increased 3.8% from the same month a year ago, Diário Comércio Indústria & Serviços reported, citing data from Boa Vista SCPC.

ANDEAN

* The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has agreed to invite Colombia to become a new member. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos will sign an accession agreement with the OECD on May 30. The country will also formally join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization this week, making it the sole Latin American nation in NATO, Reuters reported. Colombia will become a "global partner" of NATO, Santos said.

* Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro had a meeting with U.S. Senator Bob Corker on May 25, but they did not provide details on what was discussed, Reuters reported. The meeting followed Maduro's recent re-election to a six-year term in a vote the U.S. and many other countries did not recognize.

* The International Monetary Fund approved a successor two-year flexible credit line for Colombia in an amount equivalent to about US$11.4 billion, while canceling its previous financing arrangement with the country.

* More than 110,000 Colombians who were behind on debt payments have restructured their loans with improved conditions since a new central bank resolution allowing them to do so came into force in October 2017, Portafolio reported.

SOUTHERN CONE

* Grupo Supervielle SA confirmed that it purchased 100% stock ownership of InvertirOnline's Argentine operations in a US$38.5 million deal. The acquisition of the online stockbroker includes InvertirOnline SA and InvertirOnLine.com Argentina S.A., the banking group said.

* Chilean President Sebastian Pinera named Administradora de Fondos de Pensiones Habitat SA Chairman Juan Benavides as the new board chairman for copper producer Codelco, Reuters reported.

* Thousands of Argentine protestors took to the streets on May 25 to voice their disapproval of government efforts to obtain a credit line from the International Monetary Fund, which they blame for the country's problems during a previous financial crisis, Reuters reported.

* Due to the recent depreciation of the Argentine peso against the dollar, Argentina's government has raised the maximum borrowing limit under its subsidized Procrear mortgage lending program by 10%, Clarín reported.

* The average profitability of Argentine banks increased 2.6% year over year in March mainly due to higher interest rates on loans, El Cronista reported, citing central bank data.

* Insurance companies Chubb Seguros Chile SA, Seguros Generales Suramericana SA and Liberty Compania de Seguros Generales SA have filed a joint lawsuit against Chile's Treasury, construction firm Sacyr and road operator Costanera Norte claiming around US$56.3 million in total damages caused by the flooding of the Mapocho river around two years ago, La Tercera reported.

IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

* Middle East & Africa: Kenyan watchdog probes central bank officials; S&P affirms South Africa

* Europe: Italy in fresh turmoil; Swiss Re ends investment talks with SoftBank

Helen Popper contributed to this article.

The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 8:00 a.m. São Paulo time, and scans news sources published in English, Portuguese and Spanish. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.