SEC pressing Spanish bank on Cuba

SEC pressing Spanish bank on Cuba

U.S. stock exchange regulators asked Spanish bank BBVA to explain the
presence of an employee in Havana, El País reported.

Like those of many other foreign multinationals, BBVA shares trade on
the New York Stock Exchange. American Depository Shares on U.S. stock
exchanges help companies raise capital in the United States and add
prestige.

The Securities and Exchange Commission was prompted into action by an
annual report in which BBVA states it operates a small office in Cuba.
BBVA has had a presence in Cuba since 1995.

BBVA also owns Birmingham, Ala.-based Compass Bank.

Citing efforts to ease its bureaucratic burden, Spanish oil company
Repsol YPF in February told Spain's Comisión Nacional de Valores that it
will delist its American Depository Shares from the New York Stock
Exchange. Last year, the SEC had asked Repsol for five separate reports
about its crude oil reserves in each country it operates in. In a
previous instance, the SEC asked for exhaustive explanations about
Repsol's business in Cuba and Iran."

http://www.cubastandard.com/2011/04/18/sec-pressing-spanish-bank-on-cuba/