PRICEVATERHOUSE(COPERS @ LLP PO Box 3659566 San Juan PRO6-3 566 Telephone = (787) 754 9090 Facsimile (FAP 76h 104 Report of Independent Accountants To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of First BanCorp: In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated statements of financial condition and the related consolidated statements of income, comprehensive income, changes in stockholders” equily, and cash flows present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of First BanCorp and ils subsidiaries at December 31, 2001 and 2000, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2001 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management; our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits of these stalements in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America, which require that we plan and perfonn the audit to abiain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, and evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe thal our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion. As discussed in Notes 2, 9 and 29 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements, in 2001 the Company adopted the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 133, “Accounting for Certain Derivative instruments and Certain Hedging Activities,” as amended, which effect was accounted for as a cumulative effect of a change in accounting principle. February 15, 2002 CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACDOUNTANTS: (OF PUERTO RICO) Licanse Ho. 276 Expires Dec. 1, 2004 Stamp 1767164 of the P.R. Society of Certified Pubic Accountants nas baer effined fo the file copy of ins report is ru 8