Florida Banking November 2022

Stewarding an Investment in the Local Community Banesco USA

B anesco USA is part of Banesco International, a financial services brand that has provided banking, insurance and global payment solutions for more than three decades. Today, the multibank company has over 5,300 employees and a network of 263 branches serving over 4.8 million client relationships. Banesco International Group is comprised of four independent financial groups, each with their own charter, independent management team and

“We’re achieving our goals with a very aggressive and responsible growth trajectory,” Garcia- Velez said. “We’ve firmly established our objective to be the go-to bank for business owners and professionals with needs for domestic and international banking services.” Banesco USA recently received a $250 million investment from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Emergency Capital Investment Program (ECIP), the only bank in Florida and Puerto Rico to

board of directors. Bane s co USA wa s founded in January 2006 and operates as a domestic bank with four business centers in South Florida and one i n San J uan , Puerto Rico. Later this year, the Bank will open a fifth business center near the Doral area and move into a new headquarters facility that’s close to Miami International Airport, the heavily concentrated business districts of Doral and Medley and just a short drive to downtown Miami. “ We f o l l o w a community banking

receive the funds. Under the program, the U.S. Treasury will invest up to $8.7 billion in community f inanc ial ins t i tut ions to increase lending to minority borrowers and businesses in underserved communities. “We’re proud that the U.S. Treasury placed their trust in Banesco USA to be good stewards of this funding. It is a huge vote of confidence in the Banesco USA team. The Bank received the investment because of the professionalism and dedication to serving our local communities,” Garcia-Velez said. Th e t e am wo r k e d

“WE’RE PROUD THAT THE U.S. TREASURY PLACED THEIR TRUST IN BANESCO USA TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF THIS FUNDING. IT IS A HUGE VOTE OF CONFIDENCE IN THE BANESCO USA TEAM."

- GARCIA-VELEZ

on the extensive appl ication for months, which included developing and presenting a comprehensive business plan detailing how the Bank will responsibly deploy the capital to minority individuals, minority-owned businesses and underserved communities. As a result, they were awarded the maximum amount of Tier 1 capital available, which Garcia-Velez believes will be “transformational”. That’s because the ECIP funding is for long-term investments that will strengthen local economies and make them more resilient and self- sustaining, rather than short-term or one-time payments like other recent government-funded stimulus programs. Banesco USA, Continued on page 10

model,” said Cali Garcia-Velez, president and CEO of Banesco USA. “Since each bank in the Banesco International Group operates independently, we are a very agile, customer-centric organization that can meet the unique needs of each of the communities we serve.” “We’re very excited to bring the team together under one roof,” Garcia-Velez said. “The move will enhance collaboration among our employees by making it easier to meet and talk to each other in person. That results in faster decisions and service delivery to our customers.” The execution of that strategy led to the Bank’s record growth in the first half of 2022. In July, Banesco USA reached $2 billion in total loans.

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