Dollars and Sense, a News is my Business podcast

Aurelio Alemán, CEO of First BanCorp., the parent company of FirstBank, explained what the acquisition of Banco Santander’s assets in Puerto Rico will represent for the market and the financial institution he heads.

He also went over aspects of the bank’s third quarter results, released a day after the deal was made public.

The U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis is working on establishing a clear picture of Puerto Rico's economy, and laying down a uniform methodology in line with U.S. mainland states and territories, countries across the world.

In this episode of "Dollars & Sense," Kristy Howell, economist with the BEA, provides more insight on the preliminary numbers released this week. Local economist Juan Castañer, from local analysis firm Estudios Técnicos, reacts to the findings.

The Federal Communications Commission today approved $950 million in funding to improve, expand, and harden communications networks in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Chairman Ajit Pai, who has been front and center of the telecom recovery efforts for Puerto Rico and the USVI since day one after Hurricanes Irma and María hit in September 2017, discusses the historic vote in an exclusive interview with News is my Business.

In this episode of "Dollars & Sense, a News is my Business podcast" we sat down with Rod Miller, CEO of Invest Puerto Rico, the recently launched independent entity responsible for promoting the island in the international business community.

Today’s special episode features interviews with representatives from Puerto Rico’s private sector to discuss the events of the last week, when six people with ties to Gov. Ricardo Rosselló’s administration were arrested on corruption charges, as well as the contents of nearly 900 pages of a chat on Telegram involving the governor and a group of his tightest collaborators were revealed.

The lineup of interviewees is:

1. Tomás Ramírez, representative of Puerto Rico’s small inns — or paradores — tourism sector;
2. Jorge Argüelles, president of the Puerto Rico United Retailers Association;
3. Jay Fonseca, attorney and news analyst;
4. Kenneth Rivera, Certified Public Accountant and past president of the Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce;
5. José Joaquín Villamil, economist and founder of the Estudios Técnicos analysis firm; and,
6. José Ledesma, president of the Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce.

At Dollars and Sense, we wanted to know the effects of these situations on Puerto Rico’s current and future business and investment climate. These were their thoughts.