The purpose of this book is to discuss the importance of foreign banks for the Latin American emerging markets' financial sectors and the consequences of periods of financial and economic crisis for those banks, putting special emphasis on the situation of Spanish Banco Santander and BBVA. The macroeconomic determinants of recent periods of crisis in Latin America are analyzed and positive future growth perspectives are examined. The fact that Spanish banks did not cut and run in times of crisis, but stayed in the region and increased their presence has to be especially stressed. Based on the...