| Message to Shareholders |
In 2007, we also established an association with FIMBank, a leading institution in the markets of forfeiting and factoring, which it accesses through its subsidiary, London Forfaiting Company Ltd., among others. Based on this association, we are developing a factoring platform, to participate in a business that is expanding in an especially dynamic way, allowing Bladex to participate in the foreign trade of mid-sized companies. The growth of the Bank’s business during the year was reflected in a 20.4% increase in its assets, which implied the need to significantly expand the interbank funding base of the institution. A concerted effort in this respect enabled the institutional deposit base to reach $1,462 million, 38.4% above the figure corresponding to the end of 2006, and the highest total in the past five years. The interbank financing increased by 16.7%, to reach a total of $2,515 million: we entered local Latin American markets for the first time in the history of the Bank, obtaining local-currency financing on the interbank market in Mexico and the capital markets in Peru. These accomplishments constitute an important set of building blocks in the diversification of the bank’s sources of income, products, and clients, which has been a fundamental goal of our institution. We can now assert that, Bladex’s business model strikes a well-honed balance between the income from its Commercial Division and that earned by its Treasury Division. This combination represents a fundamental pillar in the ability of Bladex to increase its of income growth a rate, and to meet the growing needs and expectations of its clients and shareholders.
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