Banco Solidario S.A. (BancoSol S.A.)

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What it is

BancoSol’s story begins in 1986 as a non-profit foundation; on 10 February 1992 it converted into a regulated commercial bank — the first microfinance bank in Bolivia and the first of its kind anywhere in the world. Co-founded by Accion, it today serves roughly two million clients, making it the dominant player in Bolivia’s microfinance system.

At the close of 2024, BancoSol had 373,337 active borrowers — a market share of roughly 23.8% — with an average loan of USD 6,919, underscoring its focus on Bolivia’s micro-entrepreneurs. Microcredit is the core engine, representing 82% of the total loan book.

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Who owns it

BancoSol does not belong to any economic group or financial conglomerate. Its equity is held by a consortium of development-finance and impact investors rather than a single controlling family or state.

Named shareholders visible in the 2024 Memoria Anual include FMO (the Dutch development-finance institution, Ontwikkelingslanden N.V.) and Triodos Fair Share Fund.

In September 2024 ASFI was notified that the Triodos shareholder entity had been renamed from “Triodos Custody B.V.” to “Legal Owner Triodos B.V.” as the legal owner of Triodos Fair Share Fund — a housekeeping change, not a change in economic ownership. The precise ownership percentages of each shareholder are not disclosed in available sources.

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Who runs it

On 20 September 2024, BancoSol’s board unanimously appointed Verónica Gavilanes as its new chief executive. Gavilanes — who brings 30 years of banking experience — formally took the role on 1 January 2025, with a mandate to deepen the bank’s lead in financial and digital inclusion.

Board chair is Esteban Altschul, who publicly backed the appointment, saying Gavilanes would position BancoSol “at the global vanguard of financial and digital inclusion.” Among her prior achievements: she created the gender-focused “Avanza Mujer” banking model and structured Bolivia’s first gender-labelled bond.

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The money, in plain words

In 2024 BancoSol earned BOB 1.31 (US$0.13)for every BOB 100 (US$10)of assets it held — a return on assets (ROA) of 1.31% — and returned BOB 12.27 (US$1)to owners for every BOB 100 (US$10)they have invested, a return on equity (ROE) of 12.27%; both sit above the Bolivian banking system average. Using those returns against its regulatory capital base, net profit is approximately BOB 480 m (≈ USD 48.7 m) — our calculation from public data.

Its regulatory capital (the financial cushion absorbing losses) closed 2024 at USD 399.6 million — the third-largest equity buffer in the entire Bolivian financial system — with a capital adequacy ratio of 15.2%, comfortably above the 10% the law requires. Loan quality is a stand-out: the overdue-loans rate was 1.38% at mid-2024, less than half the banking system’s 3.36% average and well below the microfinance-sector benchmark of 2.78%.

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What it is doing now

BancoSol launched Bolivia’s first gender-labelled bond — the “Avanza Mujer” Social Bond Series 1 — backed by a partial guarantee from BID Invest (the Inter-American Investment Corporation), channelling fresh capital specifically to women-led micro-enterprises. It also closed 2024 as the second-largest fixed-income issuer on the Bolsa Boliviana de Valores, driven by its Subordinated Bonds BancoSol III Series 3 placement.

Digitally, the bank completed more than 192 million transactions in 2024 across its network of fixed branches, mobile agencies, ATMs, and digital channels including the appSol and Solnet platforms. An innovation hub developed with Accion and Mastercard has accelerated uptake of its mobile banking app, using gamification to encourage savings and on-time repayments — the first such approach by any Bolivian bank.

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What to watch

• Foreign-currency stress. Bolivia’s shortage of US dollars has forced BancoSol to impose some restrictions on dollar withdrawals by depositors — a macro risk that no single bank can resolve alone and that bears watching across 2025.
• Loan quality trajectory. The NPL ratio climbed to 1.38% by mid-2024 from 0.97% at year-end 2023, so whether the new CEO’s commercial strategy stabilises asset quality as the portfolio grows is the key operating question.
• New leadership execution. Verónica Gavilanes took the top seat on 1 January 2025; her first full-year results will be the clearest test of strategic continuity after the CEO change.
• Regulatory capital deployment. BancoSol has ranked first in Bolivia’s CAMEL banking-soundness table for eight consecutive years — a strong base, but also a signal that if the macro environment deteriorates, this is a bank with the buffers to absorb it.

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This is news, not investment advice.