Chilean Family Plans Personal Bank

MIAMI-Union Credit Bank, an institution whose owners say will bring back personal banking to South Florida, is scheduling a grand opening for early 2002 at its three-story, 30,000-sf quarters at 1150 S. Miami Ave. in the Brickell financial corridor of Downtown.

The bank is owned by the Rishmagues, a Chilean family which has lived and worked in South Florida for 35 years. Miguel Rishmague is the bank’s chairman.

“Our goal is simple: to bring ‘personal’ back to banking, something that has been long gone with the various buyouts and acquisitions throughout the industry over the last 15 years,” Rishmague says in a prepared statement.

Real Estate, business and personal loans will be among the products offered.

Robert J. Tamayo, with 40 years in the banking industry, is president/CEO. “The initial capitalization of $10 million ensures a strong start for our bank,” Tamayo says in the same statement. He is banking on the latest technology to attract customers and compete with established institutions on Brickell Avenue.

The main office is steeped in local history and was originally designed by Miami-based Spillis-Candela. The backdrop of the center interior atrium is the original exterior wall of the historic Wilford H. Burkhart home built in 1937.

“From that wall falls a trickle of water that flows to a soothing fountain, ensuring a unique, tropical atmosphere for banking,” Tamayo says.