Exhibit 99.1

Popular, Inc. Reports Net Income of $83.9 million for the Fourth Quarter and $245.3 million for the Year Ended December 31, 2012

• Significant progress in credit quality (excluding covered loans):
  • Non-performing loans held-in-portfolio declined by $125.4 million or 8% from Q3 2012, and down 39% from Q3 2010 peak; lowest level since Q2 2009;
  • Inflows of commercial, construction and legacy non-performing loans held-in-portfolio for Q4 2012 down by $72.9 million, or 51%, from Q3 2012, and down $401.9 million, or 47%, year over year;
  • Non-performing assets decreased by $384.4 million, or 18%, year over year;
  • Net charge-offs of $100.9 million for Q4 2012, vs. $95.8 million for Q3 2012, and $126.0 million for Q4 2011;
  • Net charge-offs declined $131.3 million, or 25%, year over year.
• Net interest margin increased to 4.41% in Q4 2012
• Average balance of non-covered loans grew by $361.1 million in Q4 2012, reflecting strong mortgage and commercial originations in Puerto Rico and purchases of high-quality U.S. mortgages
• Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 13.18% and Tangible Book Value per Share of $32.55 at December 31, 2012; capital exceeds well-capitalized threshold by $1.9 billion

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico--(BUSINESS WIRE)--January 24, 2013--Popular, Inc. (“the Corporation” or “Popular”) (NASDAQ:BPOP) reported net income of $83.9 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2012, compared with net income of $47.2 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2012.

Mr. Richard L. Carrión, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Our fourth quarter results reflect the strength of our core businesses and market positions, significant further declines in non-performing loans and increases in our already strong capital ratios. In 2013, we remain focused on driving value through further progress on all these fronts and continuing to increase our strategic and financial flexibility.”

Significant events for the quarter ended December 31, 2012

• During the month of December 2012, the Corporation received a $24.2 million cash dividend from its investment in EVERTEC’s parent company. Also, the Corporation recorded pre-tax income of approximately $31.6 million related to its proportionate share of a tax benefit from a tax grant received by EVERTEC from the Puerto Rico Government. The Corporation’s equity investment balance in the entity stands at $73.9 million as of year-end. The Corporation’s participation interest in the entity was 48.5% as of December 31, 2012.

See additional details on accounting for FDIC-Assisted transaction in Table O.

Net interest income

Net interest margin for the fourth quarter of 2012 increased 4 basis points to 4.41% when compared with the third quarter of 2012. Net interest income reached $350.4 million, an increase of $7.0 million from the third quarter. The main drivers of the improvement in net interest margin are:

• Increase of $6.4 million in interest income on the covered loan portfolio. The higher yield of the covered loan portfolio was mainly the result of a substantial reduction in expected losses and the resolution of certain commercial loans in excess of their book value.
• Decrease of approximately $2.1 million, or 3 basis points, in interest expense on deposits, reflecting continuing progress in repricing the deposit base and a decrease in the average balance of deposits, mainly in brokered and non-brokered certificates of deposit.
• Decrease of approximately $1.8 million, or 24 basis points in interest expense on notes payable, driven by replacing long-term FHLB advances with brokered certificates of deposit and repurchase agreements at a lower cost.

• Banco Popular de Puerto Rico’s (BPPR) net interest margin increased 7 basis points from 5.11% in the third quarter to 5.18% in the fourth quarter. Net interest income amounted to $309.1 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2012, compared with $300.9 million for the previous quarter. The improvement was mainly the result of higher interest income from covered loans and a lower cost of borrowings as mentioned above.
• Banco Popular North America (BPNA) earned $68.5 million in net interest income for the quarter ended December 31, 2012 compared with $69.6 million in the previous quarter. The decrease in the net interest margin of 6 basis points to 3.51% was mainly caused by a decrease in the yield of commercial and mortgage loans and of investment securities due to prepayments, partially offset by a 12 basis point reduction in the cost of interest-bearing deposits.

The provision for loan losses for the fourth quarter of 2012 amounted to $82.8 million, a decrease of $23.4 million versus the previous quarter, mainly driven by lower provision for the covered loan portfolio.

• The provision for loan losses for the non-covered loan portfolio increased by $2.7 million from third quarter 2012.
  • The provision for loan losses for non-covered loans at BPPR increased by $8.4 million from the third quarter of 2012, primarily reflecting higher net charge-offs in the commercial loan portfolio mainly related to one particular relationship.
  • The provision for loan losses at BPNA operations decreased by $5.7 million from the third quarter of 2012, primarily due to continued improvements in credit trends.
• The provision for loan losses on the covered loan portfolio decreased by $26.1 million from the third quarter 2012, driven primarily by loans accounted for pursuant to ASC 310-30.
  • The provision for loan losses for loans accounted under ASC 310-30 was $1.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2012, compared with $17.9 million for the previous quarter. The $16.3 million decrease was mostly due to certain commercial and construction loan pools, which reflected lower expected loss estimates for the fourth quarter of 2012. Overall expected losses on the covered portfolio continue to be lower than originally estimated.
  • The provision for loan losses on covered loans accounted under ASC 310-20 declined by $9.8 million from the previous quarter, primarily driven by a reduction in the specific reserve of a particular commercial loan relationship.

Non-interest income

Non-interest income increased by $17.3 million versus the third quarter, driven primarily by the following items:

• A $37.9 million increase in other operating income principally due to $31.6 million of income recorded from the Corporation’s interest in EVERTEC during the fourth quarter related to its proportionate share of a tax benefit from a tax grant received by EVERTEC from the Puerto Rico Government.
• An $11.7 million increase in net gain on sale of loans as a result of higher gains on securitization transactions at BPPR and sales of U.S. commercial loans held-for-sale.
• Reduction of $5.5 million in adjustments to the indemnity reserves on loans sold, mainly as a result of improvements in delinquency trends of mortgage loans serviced subject to credit recourse as well as a declining portfolio and lower provision in the representations and warranties reserve in the U.S. mainland. The Corporation stopped selling loans subject to credit recourse in 2009.

These increases were partially offset by:

• An increase of $3.7 million in trading account losses mainly driven by lower gain on sale of trading securities. During the third quarter the Corporation sold approximately $140.7 million in trading mortgage-backed securities which resulted in a gain on sale of approximately $3.4 million, net of hedging costs. Also, during the fourth quarter there were higher unrealized losses on trading mortgage-backed securities due to higher prepayment rates and higher realized and unrealized losses of local municipal bonds due to rating downgrades of municipal agencies in Puerto Rico.

• An increase of $30.1 million in FDIC loss-share expense, principally caused by higher amortization of the loss-share asset due to lower expected losses, a release of allowance for loan and lease losses during the fourth quarter and higher unfavorable fair value adjustments of $5.3 million in the true-up payment obligation. See additional details about covered portfolio and FDIC indemnity asset in Table O.

Refer to table B for further details.

Operating expenses

Operating expenses increased by $6.4 million versus the third quarter, driven primarily by the following items:

• An increase of $4.8 million in personnel costs, driven mainly by sales incentives, retail commissions, training expenses and other compensation costs.
• An increase of $2.5 million in net occupancy expenses related to higher expenses at BPNA for property maintenance and repair and rent and higher real property taxes in the Puerto Rico and U.S. operations.
• An increase of $4.8 million in professional fees mainly due to appraisal and programming costs, processing fees, and other technology costs related to services from EVERTEC.
• An increase of $1.9 million in business promotion expenses tied to year-end institutional campaigns in Puerto Rico and higher expenses in customer affinity programs.
• An increase of $9.0 million in other operating expenses due mainly to higher costs associated with the Westernbank covered loan portfolio, of which 80% are reimbursable by the FDIC, and higher provision for operational losses in the Puerto Rico and US operations. These costs were partially offset by a lower provision for unused commitments at BPPR.

These increases were partially offset by:

• Lower FDIC deposit insurance expenses of $10.5 million, driven mainly by revisions in the deposit insurance premium calculation and efficiencies achieved from the internal reorganization of Popular Mortgage into BPPR.
• A $4.8 million decrease in other real estate owned (OREO) expenses, driven mainly by higher gains on sales of commercial properties at both BPPR and BPNA. This decrease was partially offset by an increase in fair value adjustments for commercial properties in BPPR.

Non-personnel credit-related costs, which include collections, appraisals, credit related fees, and OREO expenses, amounted to $14.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2012, compared with $18.1 million for the third quarter of 2012. The decrease was principally due to higher gains on sales of commercial OREOs at both BPPR and BPNA, partially offset by an increase in unfavorable fair value adjustments for commercial properties at BPPR.

Full-time equivalent employees (“FTEs”) were 8,072 as of December 31, 2012, compared with 8,074 as of September 30, 2012 and 8,329 as of December 31, 2011. The decline in FTEs is largely due to the retirement window for qualifying employees that was announced in October 2011 and implemented during the first quarter of 2012. When compared with the fourth quarter of 2011, salary expenses are down $2.2 million, or approximately $8.8 million on an annualized basis.

For a breakdown of operating expenses by category refer to table B.

Income taxes

Income tax expense amounted to $19.9 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2012, compared with an income tax expense of $15.4 million for the third quarter of 2012.

Credit Quality:

Credit quality continues to improve as the Company addresses its non-performing loan balances and manages asset exposures.

• Non-performing loans (NPL) held-in-portfolio declined by $125.4 million, or 8%, from the third quarter of 2012 and were 39% lower than peak levels in the third quarter of 2010. The reduction in NPLs was principally attributed to a decrease of $90.0 million in Puerto Rico commercial NPLs.
• Inflows of commercial, construction and legacy non-performing loans held-in-portfolio decreased by $72.9 million, or 51%, from the third quarter as underlying credit performance continues to improve due to successful efforts in managing early delinquency and greater economic stability.
• OREO, excluding covered OREO, increased by $14.8 million from the third quarter, as a result of continuing efforts to aggressively resolve non-performing loans.
• Net charge-offs for the fourth quarter were $100.9 million, compared with $95.8 million for the previous quarter. The increase was principally driven by higher commercial and mortgage net charge-offs of $4.5 million and $4.9 million at BPPR, respectively, offset in part by lower losses in BPNA loan portfolios. Refer to Table J for further information on net charge-offs and related ratios.
• The ratio of allowance for loan losses to loans held-in-portfolio, excluding covered loans, stood at 2.96% as of December 31, 2012, compared with 3.07% as of September 30, 2012. The general and specific reserves related to non-covered loans totaled $510.6 million and $111.1 million at quarter-end, compared with $528.9 million and $107.4 million, respectively, as of September 30, 2012. The decrease in the allowance for loan losses is driven by the improvement in credit quality and stability in net charge-offs.

BPPR Segment

• The provision for loan losses for the non-covered loan portfolio increased by $8.4 million from the third quarter 2012, mainly due to higher net charge-offs in the commercial loan portfolio.
• Net charge-offs, excluding covered loans, increased by $7.0 million from the third quarter 2012, principally due to increases in commercial loans net charge-offs of $4.5 million, mainly due to one particular relationship, and $4.9 million increase in mortgage loans net charge-offs.
• Total non-performing loans held in portfolio, excluding covered loans, decreased by $92.0 million from the third quarter 2012. This decrease was mainly driven by a decline in commercial NPLs of $90.0 million. Continued aggressive collection and loss-mitigation efforts have led to lower inflows of non-performing loans and higher volume of loans returning to accrual status after assessing borrower’s willingness and capacity of debt repayment.
• Inflows of commercial non-performing loans held-in-portfolio decreased by $55.3 million, or 58%, from the third quarter reflecting stronger underlying credit performance.
• The allowance for loan losses for non-covered loans held-in-portfolio remained unchanged at $445.3 million from the third quarter of 2012. The allowance for loan losses as a percentage of non-covered loans held in portfolio decreased to 2.92% from 2.96% in third quarter 2012.

BPNA Segment

• The provision for loan losses in the third quarter of 2012 decreased by $5.7 million. The allowance for loan losses as a percentage of loans held in portfolio decreased to 3.07% from 3.35% in the third quarter 2012. Sustained improvements in credit quality trends drove the reduction in both the provision and the allowance.
• Net charge-offs decreased by $1.9 million from the third quarter of 2012, mainly driven by reductions from the commercial loan portfolio. The annualized net charge-offs to average loans held-in-portfolio was 1.60% in the fourth quarter of 2012, down from 1.74% in the previous quarter.
• Total non-performing loans held in portfolio decreased by $33.3 million from the third quarter of 2012, mainly related to overall improvements in credit performance across most loan portfolios.
• Inflows of commercial, construction, and legacy non-performing loans held-in-portfolio decreased by $16.0 million, or 38%, from the third quarter of 2012.

Total assets increased by approximately $4.2 million from September 30, 2012 driven by:

• A $121.9 million increase in cash and money market accounts due mainly to excess balances held with the Federal Reserve Bank.
• An $87.6 million increase in trading securities, mainly due to mortgage-backed securities.
• A $229.3 million increase in non-covered loans held in portfolio mostly due to:
  • mortgage loan growth of $56.1 million during the fourth quarter of 2012, with the BPPR segment originating approximately $446.0 million in residential mortgage loans, the highest levels since 2005; and
  • growth in commercial loans of $229.6 million,
  • partially offset by a decrease in legacy loans of $81.6 million.
• Other real estate owned (covered and non-covered) increased by approximately $28.4 million, due mainly to the continuing efforts to aggressively resolve non-performing loans.

These increases were partially offset by:

• Decrease in other assets of $155.4 million driven by receivables from securities sold, not yet delivered. During the third quarter of 2012, a sale of approximately $140.7 million in trading securities was executed but not settled at the end of the quarter.
• Federal Home Loan Bank stock decreased by $28.1 million driven by lower balances of advances with the FHLB of NY.
• The Loss-Sharing-Agreement (LSA) indemnification asset was reduced by $160.0 million during the quarter, driven by collections from the FDIC, while reduced estimated losses on the covered portfolio drove higher amortization of the indemnification asset.
• The covered loan portfolio balance decreased by approximately $147.9 million.

Total liabilities decreased by $36.8 million from September 2012, driven by:

• Decreases in notes payable and other borrowings of $586.5 million, resulting from decreases in FHLB of NY advances. These advances were replaced with brokered CDs and repurchase agreements.
• Other liabilities decreased by $131.5 million, mainly due to a decrease of $66 million in liabilities for unsettled purchases of trading securities and a decrease of approximately $20.5 million in the pension plan liability, reflecting a contribution of $58.0 million, net of an actuarial valuation adjustment.

The decrease was partially offset by:

• A $681.1 million increase in deposits, particularly brokered CDs and retail deposits. Table G presents a breakdown of deposits by major categories.

Stockholders’ equity increased by $41.0 million from September 30, 2012, mainly as a result of the net income for the quarter, partially offset by a decrease in unrealized gains on securities available-for-sale and an increase in the underfunding of the pension plan liability. Refer to Table A for capital ratios and Table N for Non-GAAP reconciliations.

Refer to Table C for the Statements of Condition.

Forward-Looking Statements

The information included in this news release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and involve certain risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to (i) the rate of growth in the economy and employment levels, as well as general business and economic conditions; (ii) changes in interest rates, as well as the magnitude of such changes; (iii) the fiscal and monetary policies of the federal government and its agencies; (iv) changes in federal bank regulatory and supervisory policies, including required levels of capital; (v) the relative strength or weakness of the consumer and commercial credit sectors and of the real estate markets in Puerto Rico and the other markets in which borrowers are located; (vi) the performance of the stock and bond markets; (vii) competition in the financial services industry; (viii) possible legislative, tax or regulatory changes; (ix) the impact of the Dodd-Frank Act on our businesses, business practice and cost of operations; and (x) additional Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation assessments. For a discussion of such factors and certain risks and uncertainties to which the Corporation is subject, see the Corporation’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, as well as its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Other than to the extent required by applicable law, including the requirements of applicable securities laws, the Corporation assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect occurrences or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements.

Founded in 1893, Popular, Inc. is the leading banking institution by both assets and deposits in Puerto Rico and ranks 36th by assets among U.S. banks. In the United States, Popular has established a community-banking franchise, doing business as Popular Community Bank, providing a broad range of financial services and products with branches in New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Florida and California.

An electronic version of this press release can be found at the Corporation’s website, www.popular.com.

Popular will hold a conference call to discuss the financial results today Thursday, January 24, 2013 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern time. The call will be broadcast live over the Internet and can be accessed through the investor relations section of the Corporation’s website: www.popular.com.

Listeners are recommended to go to the website at least 15 minutes prior to the call to download and install any necessary audio software. The call may also be accessed through a dial-in telephone number 866-700-6293 or 617-213-8835. The conference code is 31838169.

A replay of the webcast will be archived in Popular’s website during the respective period. A telephone replay will be available from 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 24, 2013 to 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, January 31, 2013, at 888-286-8010 or 617-801-6888. The replay passcode is 79338243.

Popular will hold an Investor Day on Friday, March 1 at Popular Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico. You can find the link to the webcast in the investor-relations section of our website. For further information, please contact us via email at investor-relations@bppr.com.

CONTACT:
Popular, Inc.
Investor Relations:
Jorge A. Junquera, 787-754-1685
Chief Financial Officer, Senior Executive Vice President
or
Media Relations:
Teruca Rullán, 787-281-5170 or 917-679-3596/mobile
Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications