* The Mexican Congress' Chamber of Deputies has approved the law regulating the country's financial technology industry, and sent it to the executive branch for publication, El Financiero reported. The fintech law recognizes startup businesses for electronic payments and crowdfunding.
* Grupo Security SA reported net income of about 21.05 billion Chilean pesos for the fourth quarter of 2017, 38.9% higher year on year from 15.15 billion pesos. The group's profit as of December 2017 was about 74.71 billion pesos, up 0.2% annually.
MEXICO AND CENTRAL AMERICA
* Fitch Ratings withdrew the A(mex) rating of Seguros Ve por Más SA Grupo Financiero Ve por Más from Rating Watch Negative, while also affirming the Mexican insurer's rating of A(mex). The ratings action is related to the removal of sister company Banco Ve por Más SA Institución de Banca Múltiple Grupo Financiero Ve por Más' ratings from Rating Watch Negative, after management decided to cancel the acquisition of Bankaool SA Institución de Banca Múltiple.
* U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Roberta Jacobson said she will quit her post in May to pursue new opportunities, at a time when uncertainty persists over the North American Free Trade Agreement, Reuters reported. Jacobson said she did not know who would succeed her, but U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly plans to nominate former AT&T Inc. CEO Ed Whitacre as her replacement, Reuters reported, citing local newspaper Reforma.
* A Mexican central bank survey of analysts made earlier in February forecast that 2018 inflation would end at 4.13%, compared to a forecast of 4.06% made in January, Reuters reported. Annual economic growth was forecast at 2.30% for 2018 and 2.40% for 2019, up from previous forecasts of 2.28% and 2.35%, respectively.
* Remittance payments to Mexico reached $2.216 billion in January, a record for the first month of the year and up 7.47% from January 2017, El Economista reported, citing central bank data. However, the figure was slightly down from the two previous months.
* Brazilian fintech startup Nubank raised $150.0 million in its sixth investment round, bringing the total amount it has raised to $330.0 million since it was founded in 2013, Folha de S.Paulo reported. Nubank has offered credit cards as its main focus, and only received President Michel Temer's authorization to operate as a local financial entity in January.
* Real estate financing in Brazil increased 23.7% in January year-over-year to reach 3.84 billion reais, Diário Comércio Indústria & Serviços reported, citing data from the Abecip industry association. In a report by Valor Econômico, Abecip said Caixa Econômica Federal had been overtaken by Banco Bradesco SA and Banco Santander (Brasil) SA in real estate financing in January.
* Banco Citibank SA is putting the finishing touches to a new business strategy that focuses on wholesale banking operations following the sale of its retail operations in Brazil to Itaú Unibanco Holding SA, Valor Econômico reported, citing Chief Country Officer Marcelo Marangon.
* Stock exchange operator B3 S.A. – Brasil Bolsa Balcão posted recurring net income of 635.8 million reais in the fourth quarter of 2017, 5.6% lower than the 673.5 million reais in the same period in 2016. The company's financial result was at a loss of 25.2 million reais in the quarter, compared to a gain of 196.6 million reais in the year-ago period.
* XCMG Construction Machinery Co. Ltd., a Chinese heavy equipment maker, is studying the possibility of launching a multipurpose bank in Brazil, Valor Econômico reported. Representatives of the Chinese group met with financial regulators on March 1 to discuss a bank opening. The group is reportedly planning to launch the bank following comments from Brazilian central bank head Ilan Goldfajn that the government was considering opening the local financial market to foreign financial institutions.
* Brazil's economy in the fourth quarter of 2017 grew 0.1% from the third quarter, compared to a median estimate of 0.4% growth set by economists, Reuters reported, citing statistics institute IBGE. The country grew 1% for 2017 as a whole, also below the 1.1% median estimate.
ANDEAN
* Portugal-based Novo Banco SA said it completed the sale of assets of Novo Banco S.A., Venezuela Branch to Venezuela's BANCAMIGA, Banco Universal CA, and as such, Novo Banco will no longer have any banking activity in Venezuela. The Portuguese bank said it received approval from the central bank of Portugal and the Venezuelan financial sector regulatory authority.
* Venezuela moved its presidential election to the second half of May from April 22 after an agreement between the government and some opposition parties, Reuters reported, citing the country's election board.
* U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is considering new sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry and on additional government officials to put more pressure on President Nicolas Maduro who is seeking re-election, Reuters reported, citing an unnamed U.S. official. The new sanctions could hit Venezuela's military-run oil services firm Camimpeg, and may also target insurance coverage for oil tankers and oil cargoes involving state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the official added.
* Peruvian authorities searched the local offices of Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht on March 1 after Jorge Barata, Odebrecht's former head of operations in Peru, had testified that he gave campaign donations to several presidential candidates in 2011, Reuters reported.
* Peru's inflation expectations for the next 12 months fell to 2.19%, the lowest in eight years, El Comercio reported, citing the latest central bank survey of economists. For 2019, inflation expectations were steady at 2.5%. The country's consumer price index saw 0.25% growth in February from January, and was up 32% from February of the previous year, Reuters reported, citing statistics agency Inei. The twelve-month rate through February 2018 was up 1.18%, compared to 3.25% in February 2017.
* The corporate loan portfolio of Colombian banks is expected to grow 5.1% this year due to a more favorable business climate including a reduced tax burden on companies, La República reported, citing a report by the Davivienda Corredores brokerage firm. Corporate loans accounted for 54.7% of the total credit stock at the end of 2017.
* María Clara Hoyos, executive president of Colombian microfinance industry association Asomicrofinanzas, said the sector's credit stock was expected to grow 10% in 2018, underscoring the need for orderly growth to avoid an increase in default rates, La República reported.
* Pension reform is becoming increasingly necessary in Colombia to ensure the system's financial sustainability, La República reported, citing a report by Fitch Ratings. The ratings agency noted that payment of pensions under the pay-as-you-go system would reach 41.1 trillion Colombian pesos this year, equivalent to 17.5% of the 2018 budget.
SOUTHERN CONE
* Banco de Galicia y Buenos Aires SA said the bank was sued by Argentine consumer protection group ADUC over fees charged by Galicia for the withdrawal of funds at other branches, including cashing a check at the window of different branches where the check writer has an account. The ADUC said the practice is unlawful and should be stopped. Galicia said it is analyzing the implications of the case but expects an unfavorable result would not have a significant impact on its performance.
* Argentina's government has already covered half of its financing needs for 2018 following the issuance of two peso-denominated bonds worth $2.90 billion earlier this week, La Nación reported. That brought to $15.50 billion the amount raised in debt sales of the needed $30.50 billion needed this year.
* U.S. investment firm Franklin Templeton Investments has partnered with Argentine fund manager Grupo SBS to act as an investment adviser on three fixed-income mutual funds that SBS intends to relaunch, Reuters reported. Grupo SBS is hoping to increase its assets in the three funds to $1.00 billion, from the current level of about $200 million, director Leandro Trigo said in an interview.
* The number of Uruguayan current accounts suspended due to the issuance of bouncing checks has stabilized over the last two years, El País reported, citing a report by the Lideco consumer defense group based on central bank data. It said 2,052 accounts were suspended due to bounced checks in 2017, virtually unchanged from the previous year and 2015.
* Chile's Imacec monthly economic activity index for January is expected to rise more than originally forecast due to better-than-expected industrial production data for the first month of the year, Pulso reported, citing local economic analysts. It said market estimates for January's economic growth were between 2.7% and 3.8%.
* Asia-Pacific: Indian state banks to consolidate overseas ops; CBA unit float moves forward
* Middle East & Africa: Barclays Africa rebrands; Fitch lowers Bahrain; BNY Mellon eyes Riyadh office
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.
