UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington,
D.C. 20549
Form
8-K
CURRENT
REPORT
Pursuant
to Section 13 OR 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date
of Report (Date of earliest event reported):
January
17, 2013
POPULAR,
INC.
(Exact
name of registrant as specified in its charter)
|
Puerto Rico |
001-34084 |
66-0667416 |
|
(State or other jurisdiction of |
(Commission File |
(IRS Employer Identification |
|
209 Munoz Rivera Avenue |
00918 |
|
|
(Address of principal executive offices) |
(Zip code) |
|
(787) 765-9800
|
|
(Registrant's telephone number, including area code) |
|
NOT APPLICABLE
|
|
(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report) |
Check the
appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to
simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any
of the following provisions:
⃞
Written
communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR
230.425)
⃞
Soliciting
material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14a-12)
⃞
Pre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14d-2(b))
⃞
Pre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.13e-4(c))
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
Appointment of Chief Financial Officer
On January 24, 2013, Popular, Inc. (“Popular” or the “Company”) announced that Carlos J. Vázquez will become Chief Financial Officer of the Company, effective as of March 15, 2013, succeeding Jorge A. Junquera. Manuel Chinea will assume the role of Chief Operating Officer of Popular Community Bank.
Mr. Vázquez has been with the Company in senior management for more than 15 years. Before assuming his current role as President of Popular Community Bank, Mr. Vázquez was in charge of Consumer Credit in Puerto Rico and prior to that he served as the Chief Risk Officer of the Company. Mr. Vázquez is 54 years old and is a graduate of the School of Engineering of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and obtained an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Mr. Junquera will assume the new role of Vice Chairman and Special Assistant to the CEO, assisting in business development initiatives and overseeing the Company’s portfolio investments.
Mr. Chinea has over 23 years of service at Popular and has served in various capacities, including retail banking operations, marketing, product development care center, Popular Investments, and consumer loan units, among others.
In connection with his appointment, Mr. Vazquez’s compensation package will be increased, including an increase to his annual salary from $612,000 to $650,000.
A copy of the press release relating to this announcement is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1.
Departure of Directors
On January 17, 2013, Mr. Manuel Morales, Jr. and Mr. José R. Vizcarrondo informed the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) that they would not stand for re-election as directors for a new three year term when their respective term expires at the upcoming 2013 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Each of Messrs. Morales’ and Vizcarrondo’s decision was not related to any disagreement with the Company over its operations, policies or practices. Mr. Morales has served as a director of the Company for 23 years and has served as a director of Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, the Company’s principal banking subsidiary, for 35 years. Mr. Vizcarrondo has served as a director of the Company and Banco Popular de Puerto Rico for nine years.
The Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee of the Board has commenced the process of identifying and evaluating nominees to replace Messrs. Morales and Vizcarrondo.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
99.1 Press release dated January 24, 2013
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to
the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant
has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
|
POPULAR, INC. |
|||
| (Registrant) | |||
|
Date: |
January 24, 2013 |
By: /s/ Jorge J. García |
|
|
Jorge J. García |
|||
|
Senior Vice President and Corporate Comptroller |
|||
Exhibit 99.1
Popular, Inc. Appoints Carlos J. Vázquez as Chief Financial Officer; Jorge Junquera Named as Vice Chairman and Special Assistant to the CEO
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico--(BUSINESS WIRE)--January 24, 2013--Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) announced today that Carlos J. Vázquez, currently President of Popular Community Bank, will become Chief Financial Officer of the Company, effective as of March 15, 2013. Mr. Vázquez will succeed Jorge Junquera, who will assume the new role of Vice Chairman and Special Assistant to the CEO. Mr. Manuel Chinea will assume the role of Chief Operating Officer of Popular Community Bank.
Richard Carrión, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, stated that “Carlos’ diverse experience and knowledge of the various operations of Popular make him a perfect candidate to assume the role of CFO.”
In his new role, Mr. Junquera will, among other things, assist in business development initiatives and help oversee the Company’s portfolio investments. He will also represent the Company on various boards of directors of entities in which the Company has an ownership interest. Mr. Junquera stated that “after working for Popular for over 40 years, 16 of which I served as CFO, I look forward to this transition by assuming a role in which I can focus on business development initiatives rather than on day-to-day management responsibilities.”
Mr. Carrión stated that, “in his role as CFO, Jorge has made an invaluable contribution to Popular. One of his most important contributions was to provide strong leadership during the recent financial crisis and ensure that the Corporation and its banking subsidiaries always maintained adequate levels of capital and liquidity during that difficult period. We thank him for his years of dedicated service to the Company. In his new role, I am sure that Jorge will continue to make an important contribution to the future success of the Company.”
Mr. Vázquez has been with the Company in senior management for more than 15 years. Before assuming his current role as President of Popular Community Bank, Mr. Vázquez was in charge of Consumer Credit in Puerto Rico and prior to that he served as the Chief Risk Officer of the Company. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Vázquez worked at JP Morgan & Co. where he held various investment banking and capital markets positions. Mr. Vázquez is 54 years old and is a graduate of the School of Engineering of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and obtained an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Mr. Chinea has over 23 years of service at Popular. Some of his previous responsibilities were Retail Banking Operations, Marketing, Product Development Care Center, Popular Investments, and Consumer Loan Units, among others. Mr. Carrión stated that, “Manuel knows our US operations well and I am confident that he will greatly benefit our Institution.” Mr. Chinea will commence in his new role effective on January 28, 2013.
Mr. Carrión noted that the changes were part of Popular’s normal management succession process and reflected the depth of talent available in the Company.
Founded in 1893, Popular, Inc. is the leading banking institution by both assets and deposits in Puerto Rico and ranks 36th by assets among U.S. banks. In the United States, Popular has established a community-banking franchise, doing business as Popular Community Bank, providing a broad range of financial services and products with branches in New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Florida and California.
CONTACT:
Popular, Inc.
Teruca Rullán
Senior Vice
President
Corporate Communications
787-281-5170 or
917-679-3596/mobile