 |
Best Bank: Banco Agrícola Comercial de el Salvador |
Yet again Banco Agrícola takes the top award in El Salvador. The bank holds 30% of the Salvadorian market and in the past five years its deposits have grown by 141% and its loan portfolio by 151%. In December 2008, Banco Agrícola recorded impressive profits that accounted for 47.5% of total banking sector profits. Return on equity for the retail division was 31.5% and for the bank as a whole it was 12.5%.
In May 2007, Bancolombia acquired Banco Agrícola. As yet integration has been limited. "Bancolombia realized that Banco Agrícola was doing a great job and so they haven’t interfered much," says Alejandro García, a senior bank analyst at Fitch Ratings.