Banco Atlántida El Salvador S.A.
BIO has granted a USD 15M loan to Banco Atlántida El Salvador (BAES), a commercial bank specialized on SME financing in El Salvador.
Amount
$ 15,000,000.00
Type of investment
Debt
Development impacts
- Local economic growth
- Fight against climate change
- Promotion of ESG best practices
Beneficiary locations
Investment field
Financial Institutions
Activity
Organisation
Banco Atlántida El Salvador S.A.
Domicile
The use of funds will be to finance the SME’s and green portfolio of the bank. This is an opportunity to support the climate transition in El Salvador, a country vulnerable to the impact of climate change.
The institution offers a full range of banking solutions to its clients (80% are MSMEs) and is in the process of establishing itself as an innovative bank within the retail segment. The institution is the 7th largest bank in the country and its strategy in the past years has been focused on portfolio growth) and brand consolidation
Development impacts
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Local economic growth
Promoting SMEs access to financial products and services by channeling 50% of BIO funding to support Banco Atlántida’s SME portfolio, supporting the mobilization of local savings and contributing to empower businesses by transferring financial know-how to BAES' clients through an innovative offering of non-financial services tailormade to SMEs, such as training and other guidance that supports the development of businesses' growth and sustainability.
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Fight against climate change
50% of BIO's use of funds (USD 7.5M) will be dedicated to the growth of BAES green portfolio (representing 12.4% of GLP at the end of 2023). The product "EcoCredito" has a robust framework to classify climate change mitigation projects such as renewable energy, energy use efficiency and environmental protection projects. The green portfolio is expected to reach ~20% of GLP by the end of BIO's investment period.
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Promotion of ESG best practices
Supporting an institution with a good ESMS, already aligned to BIO's requirements (no need for an ESAP). BAES has been performing E&S review since 2020 and it has been externally audited in 2022 on sustainable finance by SRQ on behalf of BID and assessed as "Advanced" compared to peers. They are already aligned with latest E&S requirements of Central Bank.
E&S Review
BIO did not identify major areas of intervention that required the agreement of a formal action plan for Banco Atlántida. Further improvements can eventually be supported via technical assistance. Banco Atlántida shows a good integration of E&S topics in its credit review, with dedicated tools and guidelines for each step of the investment process. A team of two people in fully dedicated to E&S assessment and to the development of green financing. Working conditions appear aligned to the requirements of IFC PS 2 and of El Salvador national legislation.
Environmental and Social (E&S) classification of the project: A
View more of our investments in this region
Financial Institutions
Optima Servicios Financieros S.A. de C.V.
4,927.00
El Salvador
28/10/2025
Subsidy
