Corporación de Ferias y Exposiciones S.A. (Corferias)

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What it is

Corferias is a private organisation for the promotion of industrial, social, cultural and commercial development in Colombia and the Andean region, seeking to widen cooperation between Colombia and the world through the organisation of fairs, exhibitions, events and conventions, generating contacts between visitors and exhibitors under international standards.

Its flagship Bogotá site comprises 23 pavilions with outdoor areas, a convention centre, a protocol room, an auditorium, food alleys, parking lots and information centres. It also operates Puerta de Oro in Barranquilla, the Caribbean coast’s principal events centre, and Ágora Bogotá, a modern convention centre with more than 18 multifunctional halls.

Corferias is listed on the Bolsa de Valores de Colombia and trades its shares on the stock market. It was declared a Permanent Special Free-Trade Zone — the first entity to obtain that status after Colombia’s 2007 free-zone decree — giving its main campus significant tax advantages.

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Who owns it

The Cámara de Comercio de Bogotá (CCB) is the majority shareholder of Corferias; Corferias is therefore one of the CCB’s subsidiary companies, though it maintains a distinct legal identity as a for-profit private corporation.

There are 167,287,797 ordinary shares in circulation; all shares are nominative and held in dematerialised form since approximately 2008, administered by Colombia’s central securities depository, DECEVAL. The exact ownership percentage held by the CCB is not disclosed in available sources; the remaining free float trades on the BVC.

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Who runs it

Andrés López Valderrama is the Presidente Ejecutivo (chief executive) of Corferias, having assumed the role with a strategic focus on innovation, modernisation, internationalisation and environmental and social impact.

The Board of Directors is chaired by Jaime Alberto Cabal Sanclemente, elected for the 2025–2026 period; Cabal is also the sitting president of FENALCO, Colombia’s national retailers’ federation, and brings broad experience in business promotion. CFO: not disclosed in available sources.

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The money, in plain words

In 2024, Corferias collected COP 286.3 billion (USD ~83 million) in revenue — up 8.1% on the prior year — and kept COP 48.5 billion (USD ~14.1 million) as net profit, a gain of 4.4%. It retains about 17 cents of profit from every peso of revenue — a net profit margin of approximately 16.9% (our calculation), solid for a venue and events operator.

The company earns roughly 9–10 cents of profit for every peso its owners have invested — a return on equity of approximately 9–10% (our calculation, approximate) — modest but consistent, reflecting the capital-heavy nature of owning and maintaining large fairground infrastructure. At a share price of COP 1,500, (US$0.43)the stock carries a dividend yield of about 7.96% — a meaningful income stream — and trades at only about 5.2 times annual earnings (price-to-earnings ratio, our calculation), which is low even by emerging-market standards.

An independent study by Fedesarrollo found that Corferias’ activities generated a value-added of COP 17.2 trillion (US$5.0 bn) for Bogotá’s economy — equivalent to 4.7% of the city’s GDP — and nearly COP 20 trillion (US$5.8 bn) nationally, or 1.3% of Colombia’s GDP.

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What it is doing now

In March 2026, Corferias announced the largest transformation in its history: a phased modernisation that will renew up to 50,000 square metres of exhibition space, build new pavilions and reorganise its entire infrastructure — all without stopping the calendar of fairs and events.

Two new column-free halls will replace the current front pavilions: a 20,000 m² North Pavilion and a 15,000 m² South Pavilion, together maintaining the total 50,000 m² exhibition capacity but to an entirely new international standard. Corferias simultaneously contributed land to the Campus de Ciencia, Innovación y Tecnología de Bogotá-Región, a city megaproject led by the CCB and the Bogotá Mayor’s office, designed to connect companies, universities and government around science, technology and innovation.

Corferias also became the first fairground and events operator in the world to be certified as a B Corporation, and received its second consecutive Carbon Neutral certification from Bureau Veritas.

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What to watch

• Construction execution risk. Renovating a live fairground in stages is operationally complex; any schedule slip or cost overrun could hit margins and the dividend.
• Ownership transparency. The CCB’s exact shareholding is not publicly disclosed; any change in that relationship — or a CCB strategic pivot — would directly affect Corferias’ direction and governance.
• Seasonality and the events calendar. Revenue swings sharply between odd and even years depending on which flagship fairs fall when; net revenues rose 7.2% in Q3 2025 year-on-year, but individual quarters can run at a loss, as Q1 2026’s operating result of −COP 5.8 billion (US$2 mn) shows.
• CTIB land contribution. Corferias has recognised a significant increase in investments in associates in Q1 2026 tied to the CTIB land transfer; the ultimate financial return on that asset depends on a long-horizon urban-development project.
• Free-zone status. The tax benefits of operating as a Zona Franca Permanente are material; any regulatory change to Colombia’s free-zone regime would affect the cost base directly.

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This is news, not investment advice.