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Finansur finale; legal hurdles

S&P Global Market Intelligence presents the week's latest news and trends in Latin American banking.

Finansur finale

* Banco Central de la República Argentina ordered the restructuring of Banco Finansur SA and accepted an offer from Banco de Galicia y Buenos Aires SA to acquire the assets and assume privileged liabilities of the troubled local lender.

* Before the central bank announcement, an Argentine judge lifted an asset freeze on Banco Finansur in order to protect its depositors and staff in the face of its collapse.

* Banco Galicia also confirmed its acquisition of Banco Finansur, although did not disclose the amount of assets and liabilities to be purchased. The deal effectively brings to a close months of uncertainty around Banco Finansur, which was put up for sale following a tax evasion investigation into one of its owners, Cristóbal López.

Legal hurdles

* Banco Santander (Brasil) SA said it received a letter seeking clarification over reports saying the bank lost a tax case worth 9 billion Brazilian reais in collection, regarding the non-withholding of income tax in the alleged capital gain of a particular foreign investor.

* Argentine consumer defense association ADUC filed a class-action lawsuit against Banco Santander Río SA over alleged exchange differences in the acquisition of foreign currency and demanding cancellation of purchases made with debit and credit cards abroad.

Internal shakeups

* Panama's BAC International Bank Inc. decided to absorb subsidiary units Credomatic de Panamá SA and BAC Leasing.

* The control of Banco Original SA was transferred from scandal-hit J&F Investimentos SA, run by brothers Joesley and Wesley Batista, to their father José Batista Sobrinho, and elder brother José Batista Jr. in a central bank-approved operation.

Credit trends

* The total loan portfolio for Mexico's banking sector expanded 9.4% year over year in January to reach around 4.750 trillion Mexican pesos, local banking and securities commission CNBV said.

* Consumer default in Brazil declined 2.6% in February compared to the year-ago period, while it slid 3.3% in the 12 months through February, data from credit research firm Boa Vista SCPC showed.

* Credit card spending in Colombia rose 9% in 2017 from the previous year to 67.5 trillion pesos up from 61 trillion pesos, despite the country's economic troubles during last year, according to data from financial regulator Superfinanciera.

* Argentina's credit market is expected to slow on the back-end of a surge in peso credit that was released to the private sector last year, partly as a result of much slower growth in deposits, data from research firm Elypsis said.

In other news

* The newly approved financial technology law in Mexico is credit positive for local banks, as it sets a clear set of rules for fintech companies which promotes a level playing field with banks, Moody's said.

* Banco Triângulo SA will introduce in July a digital platform for customers of small and medium-sized retailers catered by the bank.

* Banks in Mexico plan to invest about 100 billion pesos in the country over the next two years, as long as macroeconomic conditions are in shape, said Marcos Martínez, the head of banking association ABM.

* Eduardo Osuna, CEO of Grupo Financiero BBVA Bancomer SA de CV, said Mexico's financial sector needs to consolidate further and that his company is looking to take the next opportunity that arises for a bank acquisition.

* Shinhan Financial Group Co. Ltd. unit Shinhan Bank Co. Ltd. opened a branch in Mexico City.

Featured this week on S&P Global Market Intelligence

* Hires and Fires: A weekly rundown of executive management, board and other personnel moves at Latin American financial institutions.

* Ratings Roundup: A summary of various ratings actions on Latin American financial institutions and economies.