Although Grupo Aval S.A. de Colombia owns both financial entities, the conglomerate has decided that the two banks will compete separately in the Panamanian market.
Despite the decline in the sector, the balance of agricultural loans is growing and April 2015 amounted to $1,448 million, with BNP, Global Bank and Multibank granting the most loans.
Figures for April 2015 show that the National Bank of Panama (BNP) has a balance of agricultural loans of $445 million, Global Bank with $300 million, Multibank with $162 million and Banistmo $110 .
With steady growth and reaching up to $1 billion a year, this financing mechanism is controlled by 24 companies, mostly banks.
Every year, the activity records growth of between 10% and 20%. "Using a factoring contract, a trader or manufacturer can assign an invoice or other credit document to a factoring company in exchange for a full or partial financial advance" explains an article in Panamaamerica.com.pa.