Best bank: Banco CMB
While Mexico is at the centre of the nearshoring debate, Costa Rica is quietly getting the job done. In 2023 the country attracted foreign direct investment inflows equal to 12% of its economy, which in turn drove economic growth above 5%. Costa Rica has long been an appealing place to develop service companies that sell into the US, including 170 shared service centres that perform back office and strategic operations for parent companies.
The country’s green policies have led to many high-income tourist projects, but the investment base is broadening. Today there are more than 500 subsidiaries of international companies based in Cost Rica, and Banco CMB, the country’s best bank, claims to have banking relationships with around 80% of them.
Banco CMB is part of Citi’s international network and is therefore particularly well placed to take advantage of both international capital flows and a booming local economy. Led by country manager Edward Sanchez, the bank has been particularly keen to take advantage of the corporate growth and has worked with supranationals to channel dollars to local businesses that have positive impact in the country. Meanwhile the bank continued to play to its advantage in the corporate and small and medium-sized enterprise sectors with innovation in cash management and other treasury management services.
In total, the bank reported strong growth results in 2023. The bank’s asset base grew 10% to $1.2 billion and total deposits 2.6% to $918 million. Total loans rose 8.6% to $202 million while the non-performing loan ratio remained at 0%. Meanwhile, CMB’s total revenues during the year rose by 20% to $249 million and profit increased by 80%, highlighting the bank’s ability to generate operational leverage. The bank’s return on equity jumped to 48.5%.
Best bank for ESG: Banco CMB
Banco CMB continued to fulfil its environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments in reducing carbon emissions and boosting awareness of animal welfare.
The bank also played a pivotal role as joint bookrunner in key ESG transactions. Notably, it acted as sole left lead on a $400 million offering of new senior secured sustainability-linked notes for Liberty Costa Rica. This transaction introduced a novel structure, whereby net proceeds from the offering were used to acquire participation interest in a secured loan provided by the Inter-American Investment Corporation.
The bank also expanded its infrastructure to support sustainable mobility by installing four additional electric vehicle charging stations on its premises, bringing the total to five. Throughout the year, these stations provided over 24,000 kilowatt hours of electricity for employees’ electric cars, resulting in an estimated avoidance of approximately 40,000 kilograms of CO2 emissions.
Additionally, the bank’s 768 solar modules, installed in late 2022, generated 555 megawatt hours of electricity over the awards period, reducing about 22.1 tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions.
In alignment with its commitment to biodiversity, the lender installed three bee hotels on its premises. These installations were part of broader efforts to address global concerns over declining bee populations, crucial for maintaining ecological balance.
Citi employees actively participated in initiatives supporting animal welfare, donating food and essential accessories to benefit animals under the care of two local animal rescue organizations.
