Category: Chile

Spain’s Santander Central Hispano began merging its two Chilean banks in August 2002 to form the country’s largest bank in terms of assets, deposits, loans and equity. The new bank, […]

It hasn’t been easy for home-grown investment banks to defend their turf against Wall Street’s finest. However, in Chile, which has one of Latin America’s most developed domestic bond and […]

Relatively unknown by investors outside of its home region, LanChile is growing and profitable at a time when the world’s mightiest airlines have faltered.

Axel Christensen has built a reputation for himself as a crusader for shareholders rights in Chile. After graduating from Universidad Católica de Chile, he took a job as an analyst […]

Privatized pension systems are a remarkable Latin American innovation. Chile led the way in 1980, replacing a government-run pension system with privately managed pension savings accounts. José Piñera, aged just […]

Enersis Restructures In May, Chilean power company Enersis and its subsidiary Endesa-Chile successfully restructured $2.33 billion in commercial bank debt with 32 banks. Enersis is majority-owned by the Spanish power […]

Corbo Takes Over In April, Chile’s Senate approved by a vote of 40 to 6 the government’s appointment of Vittorio Corbo as central bank governor. Corbo replaces Carlos Massad who […]

Nicolás Eyzaguirre, Chile’s finance minister, is a gifted amateur musician and a seriously orthodox economist. He also is living proof that a socialist can make free market economics work.

The privatization of retirement funds in Latin America has come up short. Except for in Chile, the pioneer of privately managed pension funds, governments are still grappling with huge fund deficits and unfunded liabilities.

Despite the financial turmoil spreading across South America, Chile remains an isalnd in the storm. The country has pragmatism inits blood and its finance minister, Nicolás Eyzaguirre, has maintained rigid control over national spending. His former counterpart in Peru (see “Politics Torpedoes Growth”) has had less success.