The Panama International Banking Center Welcomes BBVA
The Panamanian Superintendency of Banks announced that an international banking license has been granted to BBVA Colombia SA, part of the BBVA holding company in Spain.
The Spanish financial holding company BBVA SA has regained a presence in Panama through its subsidiary Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) Colombia, after the Panamanian Banking Superintendency approved the granting of an international banking license to this financial institution. The banking regulator reported that after verifying compliance with all the requirements established in current regulations, it issued Resolution SBP-BAN-R-2025-00416 dated July 11, 2025, granting an International Banking License to BBVA Colombia. The Superintendency explains that with this authorization, BBVA Colombia SA officially joins the International Banking Center of Panama, where it will be able to operate through an office established in the country.
“With the license granted, the entity is authorized to carry out transactions that are perfected, consummated, or have effects abroad, as well as to perform other activities previously authorized by this Superintendency.” This includes the management of business clients and international asset portfolios, among others, but does not include personal or consumer banking in the domestic market. BBVA Colombia SA is part of a global financial group whose holding company is BBVA SA of Spain, a group with a long and solid history of more than 165 years of providing financial services, with a global presence in 25 countries.
“The incorporation of this renowned financial institution into the Panamanian banking system strengthens Panama’s position as a solid, reliable, and competitive international financial center. Our country has a robust regulatory framework and banking supervision aligned with the highest international standards, ensuring a safe, transparent, and efficient operating environment for top-tier financial institutions,” stated a statement from the Superintendency of Banks of Panama.
BBVA Left in 2013
At the time, the BBVA group purchased Banco Exterior and a merger was finalized, allowing it to enter the Panamanian market with a general license to operate in the country. However, in 2013, BBVA announced an agreement with Leasing Bogotá SA, Panama, a subsidiary of Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores, SA, for the sale of BBVA’s entire direct and indirect stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (Panama), SA, a transaction valued at US $646 million. This resulted in the merger of BBVA with BAC. BBVA’s Panama business, which was sold in 2013, had total assets of approximately US$2.1 billion at the end of December 2012 and deposits of approximately US$1.46 billion, representing a market share in Panama of approximately 3% at that time. The group is now returning to Panama under its subsidiary BBVA Colombia.
