PANAMA CITY, Feb. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S.A. (NYSE: BLX, "Bladex", or "the Bank"), a Panama-based multinational bank originally established by the central banks of 23 Latin-American and Caribbean countries to promote foreign trade and economic integration in the Region, announced today its results for the Fourth Quarter ("4Q23") and Full-year ("FY23") ended December 31, 2023.

The consolidated financial information in this document has been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ("IASB").

4Q23 & FY23 Financial & Business Highlights

• Sustained increase in Profitability, with Net Profit of $46.4 million in 4Q23 (+50% YoY), resulting in an annual record level of $166.2 million in FY23 (+81% YoY), fostered by higher total revenues on the Bank's successful strategy execution and favorable market conditions.
• Annualized Return on Equity ("ROE") stood at 15.5% in 4Q23 (+388 bps YoY) and 14.7% in FY23 (+573 bps YoY), on the back of record recurrent operating results.
• Record level Net Interest Income ("NII"), increasing for eleventh consecutive quarter at $65.6 million in 4Q23 (+33% YoY), reaching $233.2 million (+58% YoY) in FY23, driven by higher average volumes and rates. Net Interest Margin ("NIM") expanded to 2.62% in 4Q23 (+51 bps YoY) and to 2.49% in FY23 (+78 bps YoY).
• Fee income totaled $10.1 million for 4Q23 (+91% YoY), boosting fee income to record levels of $32.5 million (+64% YoY) in FY23, deriving from higher loan syndication fee activity and solid commissions from the letter of credit business.
• Efficiency Ratio stood at 27.6% in 4Q23 and 27.2% in FY23, as higher total revenues overcompensated increases in operating expenses (+31% YoY in 4Q23; +32% YoY in FY23) mostly related to the Bank's strategy and focus on strengthening its execution capabilities.
• All-time high Credit Portfolio at $9,532 million as of December 31, 2023 (+9% YoY).
  • Commercial Portfolio EoP balances also reached a new record level of $8,521 million at the end of 4Q23 (+11% YoY), as new client onboarding and sustained cross-selling efforts delivered strong business volumes.
  • Investment Portfolio relatively stable at $1,011 million, mostly consisting of investment-grade securities held at amortized cost, further enhancing credit-risk exposure diversification.
• Healthy asset quality. Most of the credit portfolio (96%) is classified as low risk or Stage 1. At the end of 4Q23, impaired credits (Stage 3) remained unchanged at $10 million or 0.1% of total Credit Portfolio, with a reserve coverage of 6.5x.
• Record deposits level in 4Q23, reaching $4,408 million (+38% YoY), coupled with ample and constant access to interbank and debt capital markets, denotes the Bank's sound and diversified funding structure.
• Liquidity position at $1,999 million, or 19% of total assets as of December 31, 2023, mostly consisting of cash and due from banks placed with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (94%).
• The Bank´s Tier 1 Basel III Capital and Regulatory Capital Adequacy Ratios stood at 15.4% and 13.6%, respectively, enhanced by the Bank's earning generation and risk appetite.

"2023 was an extraordinary year for Bladex. Simply put, no matter which KPI you look at, last year was, without any doubt, the best in our Bank's history.

Our credit book grew 9% year-on-year. Today, our $9.5-billion-dollar Credit Portfolio is not only a record high but, more importantly, it is as diversified and healthy and well provisioned as it has ever been, with NPLs close to zero. Deposits rose 38% year-on-year to over $4 billion for the first time ever.

On the profitability front, I am pleased to report that Net Interest Income amounted to $233 million, which represents a 58% increase year-on- year. Also, our focus on fee income yielded remarkable results, with an increase of 64% from 2022, reaching the record level of $32.5 million.

Net income for the year soared 81% to a historic record high of $166 million for the year. All this is the result of the implementation and well-crafted strategy designed to capture the full potential of the Bank. We are definitely poised for continued success in 2024."

Mr. Jorge Salas
Bladex's Chief Executive Officer

Recent Events

Quarterly dividend payment: The Board of Directors approved a quarterly common dividend of $0.50 per share corresponding to 4Q23. The cash dividend will be paid on March 19, 2024, to shareholders registered as of March 4, 2024.

$50 million Common Stock Repurchase Plan: The Bank's Board of Directors (the "Board") has authorized a repurchase program of up to $50 million of the Bank's common stock over time. The repurchase plan is intended to comply with Rule 10b-18 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

Ratings updates: On November 28, 2023, Moody's Investors Service affirmed all Bladex's ratings, including the "Baa2" long-term foreign currency deposit rating and "Prime-2" short-term foreign currency deposit rating, and changed the outlook on Bladex's long-term foreign currency ratings to stable from negative.

Notes

• Numbers and percentages set forth in this earnings release have been rounded and accordingly may not total exactly.
• QoQ and YoY refer to quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year variations, respectively.

Footnotes

1. Earnings per Share ("EPS") calculation is based on the average number of shares outstanding during each period.
2. ROE refers to return on average stockholders' equity which is calculated based on unaudited daily average balances.
3. ROA refers to return on average assets which is calculated based on unaudited daily average balances.
4. NIM refers to net interest margin which constitutes to Net Interest Income ("NII") divided by the average balance of interest-earning assets.
5. NIS refers to net interest spread which constitutes the average yield earned on interest-earning assets, less the average yield paid on interest-bearing liabilities.
6. Efficiency Ratio refers to consolidated operating expenses as a percentage of total revenues.
7. The Bank's "Credit Portfolio" includes gross loans at amortized cost (or the "Loan Portfolio"), securities at FVOCI and at amortized cost, gross of interest receivable and the allowance for expected credit losses, loan commitments and financial guarantee contracts, such as confirmed and stand-by letters of credit and guarantees covering commercial risk; and other assets consisting of customers' liabilities under acceptances.
8. The Bank's "Commercial Portfolio" includes gross loans at amortized cost (or the "Loan Portfolio"), loan commitments and financial guarantee contracts, such as issued and confirmed letters of credit, stand-by letters of credit, guarantees covering commercial risk and other assets consisting of customers' liabilities under acceptances.
9. Market capitalization corresponds to total outstanding common shares multiplied by market close price at the end of each corresponding period.
10. Tier 1 Capital ratio is calculated according to Basel III capital adequacy guidelines, and as a percentage of risk-weighted assets. Risk-weighted assets are estimated based on Basel III capital adequacy guidelines, utilizing internal-ratings based approach or "IRB" for credit risk and standardized approach for operational risk.
11. As defined by the Superintendency of Banks of Panama through Rules No. 01-2015 and 03-2016, based on Basel III standardized approach. The capital adequacy ratio is defined as the ratio of capital funds to risk-weighted assets, rated according to the asset's categories for credit risk. In addition, risk-weighted assets consider calculations for market risk and operating risk.
12. Liquid assets refer to total cash and cash equivalents, consisting of cash and due from banks and interest-bearing deposits in banks, excluding pledged deposits and margin calls; as well as highly rated corporate debt securities (above 'A-'). Liquidity ratio refers to liquid assets as a percentage of total assets.
13. Loan Portfolio refers to gross loans at amortized cost, excluding interest receivable, the allowance for loan losses, and unearned interest and deferred fees. Credit-impaired loans are also commonly referred to as Non-Performing Loans or NPLs.
14. Impaired Credits refers to Non-Performing Loans or NPLs and non-performing securities at FVOCI and at amortized cost.
15. Total allowance for losses refers to allowance for loan losses plus allowance for loan commitments and financial guarantee contract losses and allowance for investment securities losses.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements of expected future developments within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as: "anticipate", "intend", "plan", "goal", "seek", "believe", "project", "estimate", "expect", "strategy", "future", "likely", "may", "should", "will" and similar references to future periods. The forward-looking statements in this press release include the Bank's financial position, asset quality and profitability, among others. These forward-looking statements reflect the expectations of the Bank's management and are based on currently available data; however, actual performance and results are subject to future events and uncertainties, which could materially impact the Bank's expectations. Among the factors that can cause actual performance and results to differ materially are as follows: the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and geopolitical events; the anticipated changes in the Bank's credit portfolio; the continuation of the Bank's preferred creditor status; the impact of increasing/decreasing interest rates and of the macroeconomic environment in the Region on the Bank's financial condition; the execution of the Bank's strategies and initiatives, including its revenue diversification strategy; the adequacy of the Bank's allowance for expected credit losses; the need for additional allowance for expected credit losses; the Bank's ability to achieve future growth, to reduce its liquidity levels and increase its leverage; the Bank's ability to maintain its investment-grade credit ratings; the availability and mix of future sources of funding for the Bank's lending operations; potential trading losses; the possibility of fraud; and the adequacy of the Bank's sources of liquidity to replace deposit withdrawals. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

About Bladex

Bladex, a multinational bank originally established by the central banks of Latin-American and Caribbean countries, began operations in 1979 to promote foreign trade and economic integration in the Region. The Bank, headquartered in Panama, also has offices in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and the United States of America, and a Representative License in Peru, supporting the regional expansion and servicing its customer base, which includes financial institutions and corporations.

Bladex is listed on the NYSE in the United States of America (NYSE: BLX), since 1992, and its shareholders include: central banks and state-owned banks and entities representing 23 Latin American countries; commercial banks and financial institutions; and institutional and retail investors through its public listing.

Conference Call Information

There will be a conference call to discuss the Bank's quarterly results on Friday, February 23, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. New York City time (Eastern Time). For those interested in participating, please click here to pre-register to our conference call or visit our website at http://www.bladex.com. Participants should register five minutes before the call is set to begin. The webcast presentation will be available for viewing and downloads on http://www.bladex.com. The conference call will become available for review one hour after its conclusion.

For more information, please access http://www.bladex.com or contact:

Mr. Carlos Daniel Raad
Chief Investor Relations Officer
Tel: +507 366-4925 ext. 7925
E-mail: craad@bladex.com / ir@bladex.com

IR@bladex.com
www.bladex.com/en/investors

Carlos Raad
Chief investor Relations Officer
craad@bladex.com
Panama

Diego Cano
AVP investor Relations
dcano@bladex.com
+5076282-5856

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SOURCE Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S.A. (Bladex)