BCP Helm Bank USA Deal Clears Florida, Fed Still Pending
Peru · Banking
Key Facts
- —What happened Peru’s largest bank, BCP, announced Florida clearance on 16 September 2026 to buy Miami lender Helm Bank USA.
- —What it costs US$180 million for 100% of the shares, subject to a customary price adjustment at closing.
- —The catch The Federal Reserve has not yet approved the deal, and no completion date has been published.
- —The bank being bought A Florida state-chartered community bank founded in 1989, holding US$1.1 billion in assets at 30 September 2025.
- —Who its customers are Roughly 75% of Helm Bank USA borrowers have their primary home outside the United States.
- —Who the buyer is Credicorp, listed in New York as BAP, is Peru’s largest financial group and the owner of BCP.
Peru’s largest bank has won state approval to buy a Miami lender whose borrowers mostly live abroad. The Federal Reserve has not yet acted.
The BCP Helm Bank USA deal has cleared its first American hurdle. Banco de Crédito del Perú, Peru’s largest bank, said on Wednesday 16 September 2026 that Florida’s banking regulator had approved the purchase.
The approval came from the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, the state agency that charters and supervises Florida banks. It was reported by the Peruvian trade outlet Peru Retail, which carried the bank’s announcement.
That is not the end of the process. One more approval is outstanding.
The Federal Reserve has not signed off
Credicorp is the Lima-based holding company that owns BCP. Its filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission says completion depends on two American regulators.
The filing names the Florida Office of Financial Regulation and the Federal Reserve System. Only the first of those has now acted.
The Federal Reserve, the central bank that supervises bank holding companies, has not publicly cleared the transaction. No completion date has been published.
Nor has the status of the Federal Reserve application been disclosed. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is not involved, because Helm Bank USA holds a state charter.
The price and the structure
BCP agreed to pay US$180 million for 100% of the shares of Helm Bank USA. The price is subject to a customary adjustment at closing, according to the announcement of 29 December 2025.
The BCP Helm Bank USA transaction runs through two newly created companies. They are Orange Peru Holding S.A. and Orange Financial Holding Inc., both named in the Credicorp filing dated 5 May 2026.
The seller is the Colombian Helm group, the existing shareholder base of the Miami bank. The group had earlier sold its Colombian banking operations.
What Helm Bank USA actually does
Helm Bank USA is a Florida state-chartered community bank founded in 1989, during the American savings and loan crisis. It is a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which insures deposits at American banks.
It is headquartered in Miami, with branches in Miami and Orlando. The Orlando full-service branch, on South Orange Avenue, opened in 2025.
The bank also keeps a representative office in Bogotá and a presence in Medellín, Cali and Barranquilla. That Colombian reach is central to the franchise.
Its core business is cross-border residential real-estate lending to internationally active clients. Roughly 75% of its borrowers have their primary home outside the United States, according to Banking Dive.
It also takes personal and business deposits and offers auto loans, credit cards and foreign exchange. At 30 September 2025 it held total assets of US$1.1 billion.
Its loan portfolio stood at US$648.2 million and shareholders’ equity at US$106.8 million on that date. Those figures come from the December 2025 announcement.
The timeline, from December to September
Credicorp and BCP announced the agreement on 29 December 2025. Peru’s own supervisor moved next.
The Superintendencia de Banca, Seguros y AFP, which regulates Peruvian banks, insurers and pension funds, authorised BCP to acquire the whole bank. Credicorp disclosed that clearance in a filing dated 5 May 2026.
Peruvian outlets including Forbes Peru carried the news on 6 May 2026. One outlet dates the Peruvian approval to 8 May 2026.
BCP announced the Florida clearance on 16 September 2026. The sequence is therefore Lima first, Florida second, the Federal Reserve still to come.
Why a Peruvian group wants a Florida platform
Credicorp Ltd. is the largest financial holding company in Peru. It is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker BAP and is based in Lima.
It runs four business lines: universal banking, microfinance, insurance and pensions, and investment banking and wealth management. Its subsidiaries include BCP, Mibanco, Grupo Pacífico, Prima AFP, Credicorp Capital and Atlantic Security Bank.
BCP is described by the group as Peru’s leading financial institution, with more than 18 million clients. Credicorp already operates in Chile, Colombia, Bolivia, Panama and the United States.
Gianfranco Ferrari, chief executive of Credicorp, set out the logic in December 2025. The aim is to serve “Latin Americans whose financial lives span both their home countries and the United States”.
Mark Crisp, president and chief executive of Helm Bank, called the deal a natural evolution. “Credicorp’s financial strength, trusted reputation, and client-centric philosophy provide a solid foundation for our next chapter,” he said.
The prize is a regulated onshore platform. Latin American clients who want dollars, mortgages and cards in the United States can then use a bank the group owns.
What it means in practice
For customers of the Miami bank, nothing changes until the Federal Reserve acts and the deal closes. Neither the deposit insurance nor the state charter is part of what the regulators are being asked to change.
For investors in Credicorp, the value of the BCP Helm Bank USA deal sits in the licence and the client base. Credicorp has published no figure setting the price against its own balance sheet.
For Latin Americans with property or family in Florida, the practical change is an owner with deep regional reach. No change to the terms of existing loans has been announced.
More: Peru coverage, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is BCP?
Banco de Crédito del Perú, usually shortened to BCP, is the largest bank in Peru. Its parent is Credicorp Ltd., a Lima-based holding company listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker BAP. The group describes BCP as Peru’s leading financial institution, with more than 18 million clients. Credicorp also owns the microfinance lender Mibanco, the insurer Grupo Pacífico and the pension manager Prima AFP.
Does the Florida approval mean the deal is done?
No. Credicorp’s filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission says completion needs two American approvals. One is the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, which BCP said on 16 September 2026 had granted its approval. The other is the Federal Reserve System, which has not publicly acted, and no closing date has been published.
What is Helm Bank USA?
It is a community bank founded in 1989, headquartered in Miami and chartered by the state of Florida. It has branches in Miami and Orlando, a representative office in Bogotá and a presence in three other Colombian cities. Its main business is cross-border residential real-estate lending to internationally active clients. At 30 September 2025 it held US$1.1 billion in total assets.
Why would a Peruvian bank want a small bank in Miami?
Wealthy and internationally mobile Latin Americans often hold savings, mortgages and cards in the United States. Serving them from Lima means relying on someone else’s American licence. Buying a chartered Florida bank gives Credicorp a regulated onshore platform of its own. Its chief executive framed the purchase as a way to serve clients whose financial lives span two countries.
Sources: Peru Retail on the Florida approval, Credicorp’s Form 6-K on the outstanding Federal Reserve approval, GlobeNewswire on the US$180 million agreement, Helm Bank USA on its charter and branches, Banking Dive on cross-border mortgage lending, La República on the Colombian footprint, Forbes Peru on the Peruvian regulator’s clearance, Credicorp investor relations on the group’s businesses
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