Large banks in Brazil, Mexico post strong Q1 earnings; Nubank shares slide

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

Earnings express

* Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores SA reported attributable net income of about 1.730 trillion Colombian pesos in the first quarter of 2022, up 118.5% from 791.8 billion pesos a year earlier. Net interest income after impairments grew 16.7% to 1.385 trillion pesos, from 1.187 trillion pesos a year ago.

* Banco Davivienda SA's first-quarter net income was 511 billion Colombian pesos in the first quarter of 2022, compared to 101 billion pesos in the year-ago quarter. Provision expenses fell 38.5% to 699 billion pesos from 1.136 trillion pesos a year earlier.

* Banco BBVA Argentina SA's first-quarter net income was 4.03 billion Argentine pesos, 12.3% lower than the 4.60 billion pesos in the first quarter of 2021. Operating expenses for the bank grew to 27.97 billion pesos from 26.20 billion pesos a year ago.

* Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior SA's net profit was $11.1 million in the first quarter of 2022. Net interest income was $25.7 million in the quarter.

* Nu Holdings Ltd. reported a loss of $45.1 million in the first quarter of 2022, continuing from a $54.4 million loss in the first quarter of 2021.

Digital disruption

* Banco Bradesco Financiamentos SA, a subsidiary of Banco Bradesco SA, suffered a data leak affecting an estimated 53,000 clients, related mostly to financial contracts on vehicle loans, Valor Econômico reported.

* Mexico-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitso SAPI de CV has partnered with Banco de Bogotá SA to expand in Colombia and allow users to invest in cryptocurrencies starting from $10,000, La República reported.

* Shares of Nu Holdings Ltd. plunged Friday, falling more than 15% by early afternoon hours, despite BTG Pactual raising its recommendation on the stock from "sell" to "neutral."

Regulatory news

* Banco Central del Uruguay raised the benchmark rate 75 basis points to 9.25%, noting the possibility of at least two more rate increases of 50 basis points over the next meetings of the monetary policy committee.

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* Brazil's largest banks see combined Q1 income rise 29.26% YOY

Total provisions for Itaú Unibanco, Banco do Brasil and Banco Bradesco grew to 17.64 billion reais in the first quarter, up from 10.52 billion reais a year ago.

* Combined Q1 profit of 3 biggest Mexican banks jumps 40.8% YOY

Combined net profit for Grupo Financiero BBVA México, Grupo Financiero Banorte and Grupo Financiero Inbursa increased 40.8% year over year to 34.24 billion pesos.