First BanCorp in Puerto Rico Loses Director Over Personal Rift

First BanCorp (FBP) in San Juan, Puerto Rico, said that one of its directors resigned over a personal issue with another member of the board.

The $13 billion-asset company said in a regulatory filing Monday that José Rodríguez-Perelló resigned last week. In his resignation letter, included with the filing, he stated that he was leaving because of an "unpleasant incident" that occurred during an audit committee meeting last October.

The letter, written in Spanish and summarized in English by First BanCorp, claimed that an unnamed director violated the company's code of ethical conduct by making an inappropriate comment on a personal matter involving Rodríguez-Perelló's family. First BanCorp declined to intervene, prompting Rodríguez-Perelló to resign, the letter stated.

Rodríguez-Perelló had stopped participating in board activities since the October incident, the filing added.

"The board investigated the incident and concluded that no board action was necessary," First BanCorp said in its filing. "The corporation views this matter as a strictly personal incident between Mr. Rodríguez-Perelló and the other director."