Allowance Movement (Detail) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended										3 Months Ended																	3 Months Ended																3 Months Ended																3 Months Ended													3 Months Ended												3 Months Ended															3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012	Mar. 31, 2011	Mar. 31, 2012 Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 PUERTO RICO	Dec. 31, 2011 PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2011 PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2012 PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Dec. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Portfolio Segment Member UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO	Dec. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Commercial Real Estate Construction Financing Receivable Member UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages	Mar. 31, 2011 Mortgages	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Mortgages Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Mortgages Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Mortgages Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages PUERTO RICO	Dec. 31, 2011 Mortgages PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2011 Mortgages PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Mortgages PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Mortgages PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Mortgages UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Mortgages UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Legacy [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Legacy [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Legacy [Member] Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Legacy [Member] Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Legacy [Member] Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Legacy [Member] Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Legacy [Member] Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Legacy [Member] UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Legacy [Member] UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member	Mar. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member	Mar. 31, 2012 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Dec. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2012 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Finance Leases Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Dec. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member PUERTO RICO Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2012 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]	Mar. 31, 2011 Consumer Portfolio Segment Member UNITED STATES Non Covered Under Loss Sharing Agreements With F D I C [Member]
Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Losses [Line Items]
Balance at beginning of period	$ 815,308	$ 793,225	$ 664,768	$ 690,363	$ 138,496	$ 124,945	$ 4,729,550	$ 586,032	$ 578,347	$ 432,470	$ 453,402	$ 455,431	$ 124,945	$ 0	$ 236,961	$ 337,794	$ 463,904	$ 399,924	$ 313,579	$ 369,432	$ 347,291	$ 90,070	$ 94,472	$ 1,935	$ 311,399	$ 349,925	$ 221,149	$ 255,453	$ 256,643	$ 94,472	$ 0	$ 113,979	$ 143,281	$ 28,916	$ 39,785	$ 9,133	$ 8,481	$ 29,727	$ 20,435	$ 621,187	$ 36,398	$ 26,285	$ 18,372	$ 5,850	$ 16,074	$ 20,435	$ 0	$ 2,631	$ 23,711	$ 107,571	$ 70,868	$ 125,479	$ 102,261	$ 10,517	$ 5,310	$ 1,247,476	$ 107,024	$ 77,632	$ 55,926	$ 72,322	$ 42,029	$ 5,310	$ 0	$ 29,939	$ 28,839	$ 46,228	$ 76,405	$ 54,725	$ 46,228	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 46,228	$ 76,405	$ 4,651	$ 7,154	$ 4,967	$ 4,651	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 4,967	$ 4,651	$ 6,608	$ 4,651	$ 7,154	$ 0	$ 0	$ 164,038	$ 199,089	$ 156,885	$ 159,310	$ 189,849	$ 8,182	$ 4,728	$ 231	$ 126,244	$ 119,854	$ 130,415	$ 115,126	$ 133,531	$ 4,728	$ 0	$ 44,184	$ 65,558
Provision for loan losses	100,723	75,319									67,792	51,699	18,209	15,557	14,722	8,063	(1,770)	7,021										3,394	1,099	(300)	3,642	(4,864)	2,280	10,003	13,856									450	3,385	9,556	11,279	(3)	(808)	46,082	3,741									36,411	21,515	5,410	59	4,261	(17,833)	12,055	13,755						12,055	13,755	470	633									470	633	0	0	33,883	36,313										27,067	25,067	3,543	577	3,273	10,669
Valuation Allowances And Reserves Recoveries	31,922	25,255									21,212	17,594	0	0	10,710	7,661	12,863	9,552										10,126	7,504	0	0	2,737	2,048	1,881	1,951									651	1,733	0	0	1,230	218	1,369	1,315									1,265	527	0	0	104	788	4,915	3,255						4,915	3,255	1,063	767									1,063	767	0	0	9,831	8,415										8,107	7,063	0	0	1,724	1,352
Financing Receivable Allowance For Credit Losses Write Offs	(144,689)	(171,101)									(94,870)	(101,413)	(4,658)	(6,398)	(45,161)	(63,290)	(71,348)	(67,271)										(47,644)	(46,032)	(4,102)	(1,707)	(19,602)	(19,532)	(1,940)	(15,081)									(280)	(9,754)	(264)	(4,345)	(1,396)	(982)	(19,026)	(9,562)									(13,491)	(8,204)	(203)	0	(5,332)	(1,358)	(8,473)	(23,504)						(8,473)	(23,504)	(1,217)	(1,946)									(1,217)	(1,946)	0	0	(42,685)	(53,737)										(32,238)	(35,477)	(89)	(346)	(10,358)	(17,914)
Financing Receivable Allowance For Credit Losses Other Adjustments		13,807														13,807		0															0		0														0		13,807														13,807		0							0		0														0															0
Balance at end of period	$ 803,264	$ 736,505	$ 664,768	$ 690,363	$ 138,496	$ 124,945	$ 4,729,550	$ 586,032	$ 578,347	$ 432,470	$ 447,536	$ 423,311	$ 138,496	$ 9,159	$ 217,232	$ 304,035	$ 403,649	$ 349,226	$ 313,579	$ 369,432	$ 347,291	$ 90,070	$ 94,472	$ 1,935	$ 311,399	$ 349,925	$ 221,149	$ 221,329	$ 219,214	$ 90,070	$ 1,935	$ 92,250	$ 128,077	$ 38,860	$ 40,511	$ 9,133	$ 8,481	$ 29,727	$ 20,435	$ 621,187	$ 36,398	$ 26,285	$ 18,372	$ 6,671	$ 11,438	$ 29,727	$ 6,934	$ 2,462	$ 22,139	$ 135,996	$ 80,169	$ 125,479	$ 102,261	$ 10,517	$ 5,310	$ 1,247,476	$ 107,024	$ 77,632	$ 55,926	$ 96,507	$ 55,867	$ 10,517	$ 59	$ 28,972	$ 24,243	$ 54,725	$ 69,911	$ 54,725	$ 46,228	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 54,725	$ 69,911	$ 4,967	$ 6,608	$ 4,967	$ 4,651	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 4,967	$ 4,651	$ 6,608	$ 4,967	$ 6,608	$ 0	$ 0	$ 165,067	$ 190,080	$ 156,885	$ 159,310	$ 189,849	$ 8,182	$ 4,728	$ 231	$ 126,244	$ 119,854	$ 130,415	$ 118,062	$ 130,184	$ 8,182	$ 231	$ 38,823	$ 59,665