The BPPR in the logo stands for Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, where the bank has its major historical footprint.

It was led in its early stages by Rafael Carrión Sr. and Don Manuel Muñoz Barrios, the latter of which was the company's first president and administrator.

Popular acquired Banco Roig, one of the main banks in the eastern side of the island, in 1997, entering a geographical market in which it had yet to succeed.

On the retail side, Popular Securities has an extensive network of brokers in Puerto Rico, rivaled only by Swiss giant UBS and more recently by Banco Santander.

[5] In March 2013, Popular announced it would sell a $568 million portfolio of non-performing loans to a joint venture between Caribbean Property Group and funds affiliated with Perella Weinberg Partners.

[6] In 2014, Popular Community Bank sold many of its mainland United States branches in Central Florida, Illinois and Southern California to cut costs and shore up its reserves against losses caused by foreclosures and the recession in Puerto Rico.

[9] For its 100th Anniversary celebration, Popular gathered a group of famous Latin-American musicians in an effort to create a musical televised show.

After the large success of this venture, the company began to produce annual live Christmas concerts and television specials with various Puerto Rican and international singers and artists.

The concerts and specials are aired in local television stations and then released on CDs and DVD, raising money for the company's philanthropic foundation (Fundación Banco Popular) which benefits a variety of non-profit organizations in the island.