Scotiabank commits to Peru after exit rumors

Scotiabank Perú has denied Chilean media reports about a supposed sale of the Peruvian operations.

The country's third biggest bank said in a filing with securities regulator SMV that "Peru remains a key country for the bank's global strategy and the visit of our global leaders reflects the bank's commitment to growth and development in this market."

The statement added that the Peruvian unit is financially robust and holds solid assets, reflected in recent ratings upgrades by Moody's, S&P and Fitch.

"Our parent company, The Bank of Nova Scotia... announced the new global strategy to the market, which is based on generating higher returns and sustained profitable growth. We are convinced that... it will be of great value to continue promoting the country's economic growth," the statement said.

Capital stock amounts to 8.23bn soles (US$2.23bn) and total equity to 11.6bn soles, according to the 2023 financial statements.

BALANCE

Scotiabank Perú's 2023 income grew to 6.05bn soles from 4.98bn soles in 2022, although net profit fell from 1.42bn soles to 780mn soles due to higher interest expenses and loan provisions.

In January, Scotiabank had 15% of loans placed in the market, representing 52.6bn, but the share in 2018-19 was 17%.

The bank has focused on the corporate, mortgage and consumer loan segments. According to banking and insurance regulator SBS, the bank's loans in these segments amounted to 13.7bn soles, 10.7bn soles and 11.3bn soles, respectively.