SANTO DOMINGO.– The Dominican Republic's Multiple Banking Association (ABA) celebrated its forty-fifth anniversary, taking the opportunity to highlight the progress and contributions of the financial sector to the country's development, the achievements attained as a banking association, and the various projects it is promoting as part of its renewed institutional vision.
The commemorative program was led by the association's president, Rosanna Ruiz, and began with a Mass at its headquarters, officiated by Father Alejandro Cabrera. Among those in attendance were the Superintendent of Banks, Alejandro Fernández W., the Vice Governor of the Central Bank, Clarissa de la Rocha, as well as presidents and senior executives of banks operating in the country.
After the religious service, Ruiz invited those present to honor with a minute of silence the memory of José Manuel López Valdés, who led the association for 25 years, consolidating the organization and promoting the advancement of the banking sector with human excellence, ethical and professional principles.
He stated that, during these four and a half decades, the association has served as a unifying force for the common objectives of banking entities, committed to best practices and responsible management of depositors' resources with appropriate levels of risk.
Similarly, he maintained that the banking association has fulfilled its purposes of representation and outreach to regulatory and supervisory bodies, "together with whom it has been possible to build and successfully advance the agenda of regulation and progress in the modernization of the payment system and the financial system.".
Ruiz stated that "addressing the difficulties generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the complexity and challenges of current times, characterized by new actors in payment and financial services, users better empowered with their duties and rights - as it should be -, and accelerated connectivity and digitization," has been possible thanks to the joint work of the association's members and the official sectors during his tenure.
“Today, being a regional benchmark for a robust, solvent, stable, and profitable multi-banking system honors and fills us with pride. But more than anything, it commits us to continue with an agenda that has already become more diverse,” Ruiz stated.
In this regard, he recalled that the guild's Assembly incorporated a new institutional mission into the ABA in 2020: to add the interest of contributing to the construction of a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable economy, to the exercise of responsible, efficient and innovative banking.
He stated that this new vision has made it possible to enhance relevant issues such as green finance, gender equality, inclusion, education and digitalization of banking, adding a value proposition to associated banks and their employees, to financial regulation and supervision, and to the entire country.
The multiple banks were represented at the event by their presidents: Steven Puig, of Banco BHD; Gonzalo Gil, of Scotiabank Dominican Republic; María Clara Alviárez, of Banesco; José De Moya Cuesta, of Banco BDI; Víctor Méndez Saba, of Banco Vimenca; Eddy Tineo, of JMMB; and Andrés Bordas, of Banco ADEMI. Also in attendance were Juan Lehoux, Senior Executive Vice President of Technology and Operations at Banco Popular, and Henry Polanco, Comptroller of Banco de Reservas.
Among the special guests were the executive presidents of the Association of Savings and Credit Banks and Credit Corporations (ABANCORD), Cristina V. de Castro and Manuel Cocco, of the Dominican League of Savings and Loan Associations (LIDAAPI).
About the ABA
The Association of Multiple Banks of the Dominican Republic (formerly of Commercial Banks) was created on January 15, 1979, with Mr. Alejandro Grullón (EPD) as promoter and first president of this sector initiative.
The ABA was made up of eleven banks, seven of which were foreign-owned: Scotiabank, Citibank, Santander, Chase Manhattan, Bank of America, The Boston Bank, and Royal Bank. The remaining four, locally owned, were Banco de Reservas, Banco Popular, Banco del Progreso, and Banco Metropolitano.
In a press release, it was reported that the association currently comprises the 17 multiple banks operating in the Dominican Republic, which together hold 88% of the assets of the Dominican financial system.
