Bancomer’s Profit Rises

Mexican banking group BBVA Bancomer posted a consolidated first quarter net profit of $233 million, up 28 percent year-on-year. The group’s core banking business generated a net profit of $198 million. Bancomer’s mortgage credit portfolio expanded 51 percent to $4.15 billion, thanks largely to the acquisition of Mexican mortgage lender Hipotecaria Nacional in late 2004. Bancomer is the Mexican unit of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), Spain’s largest bank.