Universal bank reopens doors

CUSTOMERS of Universal Bank who have been unable to access deposits for nine months, while the scandal ridden institution has been in the hands of the Superintendency of Banks, will get relief from Tuesday March 1.
The Superintendency has lifted the reorganization restrictions which involved the transfer of control of the bank to its new shareholders, the Canal Bank.
Universal bank will recover normal reopening under a control plan approved by the regulator. “Our challenge is to normalize the operations of Universal Bank gradually and in the week of March 14 general services will be reactivated,” said Roberto Brenes, general manager of Universal Bank and Canal Bank.
The reopening includes the easing of restrictions on the accounts of customers. In March, they may withdraw up to $ 15,000 from each account, and from April 1, $20,000 In August there will be no restriction on savings and checking accounts.
With the lifting of the reorganization measure of Universal Bank last Thursday, the Superintendency of Banks of Panama gave thecnew majority shareholders control the bank. 70% of the shares were sold to Canal Bank in a process led by a reorganization committee appointed by the regulator. It ended this way to a period of almost nine months, started in June 2015 with taking operational and administrative control of the bank by the Superintendency.
Universal Bank was owned by the family of businessman and former vice president of the Republic Alejandro Felipe Virzi, who is under house arrest for his alleged involvement in the Tonosí irrigation projeccorruption case.
The Superintendency had detected irregularities in the management of the bank, weakness in corporate governance and also the entity had violated orders on freezing of accounts within the framework of a judicial investigation.
The banks new CEO is Roberto Brenes, former manager of the Stock Exchange of Panama, who also integrates the new board of the bank, agreed at a shareholders’ meeting onFebruary 18.
He told La Prensa that regardless of compensation, savings can be withdrawn. The first month, it will release 97% of savings accounts and 94% of current accounts.
Time deposits have a life. A sixth month deposit which expired in October [during the reorganization measure] was renewed six months from October. That is, it should be released in March. In all cases they are going to pay the interest.