BBVA looks to boost LatAm lending

Spanish banking giant BBVA (NYSE: BBV) intends to focus its Latin America strategy on expanding lending operations throughout the region in 2005, regional press reported BBVA América's director Vitalino Nafría as saying at a seminar in Madrid. Nafría reiterated the bank's 2005 strategy being implemented in Chile and Mexico that aims to attack the retail banking business and penetrate middle- and lower-income segments. BBVA upped total lending in Latin America by 26.3% in 2004, boosting its regional market share to 13.2%, according to reports. In Peru, Nafría mentioned that it aims to be the largest bank in that financial system, which would require it surpass the current leader Banco de Crédito del Peru. BBVA has operations in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Panama, Uruguay and Venezuela.