NR 98-40
April 16, 1998                               

Joint Release - Office of the Comptroller of the Currency/ 
                Federal Reserve Board

          Superintendencia de Bancos e Instituciones 
                      Financieras de Chile

The Superintendencia de Bancos de Chile, the Board of Governors
of the Federal Reserve System, and the Office of the Comptroller
of the Currency of the United States of America entered into a
Statement of Cooperation that will facilitate the supervision of
financial institutions operating in each other's country.  This
statement supersedes an earlier one established between the
Superintendencia and the Federal Reserve on March 1997.

The Statement of Cooperation provides for the sharing of
supervisory information to facilitate the performance of each
agencies' duties and to promote the safe and sound functioning of
financial institutions in their respective countries.  The
arrangement provides for cooperation  during the authorization
process as well as in the supervision of ongoing activities of
financial institutions operating in each other's country.  To
facilitate a spirit of cooperation, the statement contemplates
periodic staff visits both for informational purposes and for on-
site examination of cross-border operations of the institutions
they supervise,  exchanges of staff for internships and training,
and the safeguarding of confidential supervisory information. 

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