Banco Unión S.A.

—

What it is

Banco Unión is Bolivia’s largest bank by assets, managing Bs 55,303 million (~US$ 5.62 bn) in total assets and a loan book of Bs 32,901 million (~US$ 3.34 bn). The bank describes itself as Bolivia’s largest “multiple bank” — the local term for a full-service commercial lender — for the second consecutive year.

Beyond lending, the bank serves as the state’s payment arm, distributing social welfare bonuses to more than 3 million beneficiaries in 2024, including the Bono Juana Azurduy, Juancito Pinto and the Renta Dignidad pension. Its physical reach covers 202 branches, 641 ATMs and 6 mobile units, giving it 1,002 points of financial access across Bolivia — 330 of them in rural areas.

—

Who owns it

The Bolivian state, acting through the national treasury, holds approximately 97% of Banco Unión — a stake established at the bank’s founding and confirmed by law. The bank is registered as a securities issuer with Bolivia’s financial regulator, ASFI, under registration number SPVS-IV-EM-FEF-062/2000.

The remaining free float is listed on the Bolsa Boliviana de Valores under ticker BUN.

Bolivia’s national budget includes an equity injection of Bs 275 million (~US$ 27.9 m) earmarked for the bank, reflecting the state’s active role in recapitalising its principal financial institution.

—

Who runs it

The board chair is **Rubén Mario Ferrufino Goitia** (Presidente del Directorio), supported by first vice-chair Armando Álvarez Arnal and second vice-chair Gloria Leah Vargas Goitia — all current appointments confirmed on the bank’s own transparency page. The chief executive (Gerente General) is **José Vicente Herrera Amenabar**.

The bank has been recognised for three consecutive years as “A Great Place to Work,” employing more than 6,200 people. The Gerente Nacional de Finanzas y Comercio Exterior is currently listed as acting (a.i.), a position held by Omar Jhonny Choque Tolino.

—

The money, in plain words

The bank closed 2024 with equity of Bs 3,380 million (~US$ 343 m) and net profit of Bs 334 million (~US$ 33.9 m). For every boliviano of total income, it kept about 12 cents as profit — a net margin of ~12.2%, in line with Latin American state-owned banks (our calculation).

Return on equity stood at 10.72% and return on assets at 0.64% for 2024, both positioned below the average of Bolivia’s multi-service banking system. Those numbers are modest by private-bank standards but reasonable for an institution that carries heavy social-service obligations.

Its liquidity ratio reached 83.12% at year-end 2024, comfortably above the peer average of 71.37%.

The gross loan book grew 7.08% in 2024, led by corporate and mortgage lending, with microcredit the fastest-growing segment. Deposits of Bs 44,703 million (~US$ 4.54 bn) fund 73.6% of the loan book, a healthy loan-to-deposit ratio (our calculation).

—

What it is doing now

In mid-2024 the bank launched Yasta, its mobile wallet, which by year-end had more than 145,000 active users executing 80,000 transactions per day and moving over Bs 1.2 billion (~US$ 121.8 m). It also opened UNILAB, an innovation laboratory focused on co-creating technology solutions with end users.

For the first time, 47% of all transactions in 2024 ran through digital platforms, close to 109 million digital operations in a single year. Looking further ahead, the bank is exploring stablecoins as a cheaper, faster alternative for international remittances.

—

What to watch

• Net profit was essentially flat in 2024 — off just 0.14% from 2023 — as higher loan-loss provisions and rising staff costs offset gains in financial income. Any sustained rise in bad debts in a weakening Bolivian economy is the single biggest earnings risk.
• Moody’s Local Bolivia assigns a negative outlook to the sector, citing persistent liquidity pressures in foreign currency and macroeconomic factors that could weigh on the entire banking system.
• The bank’s capital-adequacy ratio (CAP) of 11.36–11.73% remains below the average of Bolivia’s multi-service banking peers — a buffer worth monitoring if credit losses accelerate.
• The pace of Yasta’s growth and the planned launch of fully digital nano-loans will test whether a state bank can move at fintech speed.

—

This is news, not investment advice.