BBVA Argentina, formerly BBVA Banco Francés, is a financial institution in
Argentina.
History
Founded on October 14, 1886, in
Buenos Aires as ''Banco Francés del Río de la Plata'' ( en, French Bank of the River Plate), it is the oldest private
bank in Argentina. Its
Beaux-Arts headquarters, designed by Jorge Bunge, were inaugurated in 1926.
Morgan Guaranty Trust acquired a 50% share in the bank in 1968, though the
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
-based bank sold most of these to
Alpargatas
Espadrilles (Spanish: ''alpargatas or esparteñas''; Catalan: ''espardenyes''; Basque: ''espartinak'') are casual, rope-soled, flat but sometimes high-heeled shoes. They usually have a canvas or cotton fabric upper and a flexible sole made o ...
, a leading local industrial firm, a decade later.
Despite the nation's economic woes during the 1980s, the Banco Francés expanded from 15 branches to 62 during the decade, and entered into a joint venture with
Bankers Trust Company in 1986. Alpargatas sold its stake to local developer
Eduardo Constantini in 1991, and entered into a second joint venture with
Merrill Lynch
Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment bank ...
in 1992.
In December 1996,
Spain's ''Banco Bilbao Vizcaya,'' (now
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria), acquired the 99.9% of the common shares of ''Otar S.R.L.'', which was a major shareholder of ''Sud América Inversiones S.A.'', and holder of over 30% of the capital of Banco Francés, hence the BBVA in its name.
[
BBVA was the fifth-largest bank in Argentina and the third-largest private one, with deposits of US$6.7 billion and a lending portfolio of US$5.4 billion a(a roughly 6% domestic share in both areas). It maintained 245 branches and almost 1,400 ATMs in Argentina, and employed around 5,200 staff. The bank announced in 2013 it would relocate its headquarters to the Consultatio Tower, in the ]Catalinas Norte
Catalinas Norte is an important business complex composed of nineteen commercial office buildings and occupied by many leading Argentine companies, foreign subsidiaries, diplomatic offices, and a hotel. It is located in the Retiro and San Nicol ...
office park, upon the Tower's completion in 2015.
In 2019, BBVA unifies its brand worldwide and BBVA Francés was renamed BBVA.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:BBVA Banco Frances
Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Companies listed on the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange
Banks of Argentina
Banks established in 1886
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria
1886 establishments in Argentina
Commercial buildings completed in 1926
Buildings and structures in Buenos Aires
Companies listed on the Madrid Stock Exchange
Argentine subsidiaries of foreign companies