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Banks in Panama: general, international and representative licences, B/.10 million capital, liquidity and free interest rates

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Last verified: 2026-10-29 · Status: Stable

Only holders of a Superintendencia de Bancos licence may do banking in or from Panama: a general licence for the local and foreign market, an international licence for business booked abroad, or a representative office. A general licence needs B/.10,000,000 of paid capital and an international one B/.3,000,000, with B/.250,000 of it deposited as a guarantee. Banks set interest rates freely, must keep 8 percent capital adequacy and 30 percent liquid assets, and must keep client information confidential except where the law requires disclosure.

Panama's currency, the balboa (B/.), is at par with the US dollar, which circulates freely; the Superintendencia de Bancos states that the balboa's value is on a par with the US dollar and that the dollar circulates without restrictions in commercial and financial transactions (checked 29 October 2026). USD figures therefore equal the balboa figures.

Key facts

Minimum paid capital, general banking licence	10000000 PABDecreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 68, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Minimum paid capital, international banking licence	3000000 PABDecreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 68, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Minimum total capital adequacy ratio (statutory)	8 % of risk weighted assetsDecreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 70, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Minimum liquid assets to gross deposits (default set by law)	30 %Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 73, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Single borrower or group exposure limit	25 % of capital fundsDecreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 95, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Interest rate ceiling for banks	None (rates set freely) textDecreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 79, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Time for the Superintendent to decide a complete licence application	90 days (extendable)Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 48, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Exchange rate used for USD conversions	1 PAB per USDBalboa at par with the US dollar (Superintendencia de Bancos); Ley 84 de 1904 art. 1, as of 2026-10-29 · in force

The rule

1. No one may carry on the banking business in or from Panama without the corresponding licence. Three licences exist: (1) general, for banking anywhere in Panama and transactions with effect abroad; (2) international, to direct from an office in Panama transactions perfected, consummated or taking effect abroad; and (3) representation, for a foreign bank's representative office, which must always use the words oficina de representación. A representative licence is requested by the represented bank itself and may then be exercised through a branch or a 100 percent owned subsidiary.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 41, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

2. Nobody may take funds from the public in or from Panama by accepting deposits or in any other way unless licensed or authorised by a competent regulator or expressly exempt by law; the Superintendencia may examine books, intervene and close premises, and order a marginal note in the Registro Público after which the company is dissolved by law (or barred from business if foreign) 60 calendar days later.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), arts. 2 paragraph, 45, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

3. Only licensed banks may use the word Banco or its derivatives in any language in their name, letterhead or advertising; notaries and the Registro Público must refuse documents that breach this.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 44, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

4. Foreign banks need the authorisation or no objection of their home supervisor to apply for a licence or a representative office.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 43, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

5. Licence applications are filed in writing through a lawyer. The Superintendent has up to 90 days from a complete file to approve or deny, based on the identity of principal shareholders, fitness of management, capacity to contribute the minimum capital with a clearly identifiable origin, a viable business plan with a contribution to the Panamanian economy, and corporate governance; the term can be extended. A 90 day temporary permit lets the applicant register its articles with the word Banco; after registration and capitalisation it requests the definitive licence, decided within 120 days.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), arts. 47 to 50, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

6. Before a licence is granted the Superintendencia publishes a notice for three business days in a national newspaper with the applicant, its directors and officers; anyone with founded reasons may object within 15 days of the last publication and the applicant may rebut within 15 days of notice.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 51, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

7. Minimum paid or assigned capital, net of losses, is B/.10,000,000 for a general licence and B/.3,000,000 for an international licence; for an international licence B/.250,000 of that capital stays deposited as a guarantee at Banco Nacional de Panamá or Caja de Ahorros, earning market interest and immune from third party attachment. The Superintendencia may change the minimum by Acuerdo.
Cost to do it: Capital of B/.10,000,000 (US$10,000,000) for a general licence or B/.3,000,000 (US$3,000,000) for an international licence, of which B/.250,000 (US$250,000) is blocked as a guarantee.
Example: An international licence bank capitalised at B/.3,000,000 keeps B/.250,000 on deposit at Banco Nacional and B/.2,750,000 available for its business. / US$3,000,000 of capital, US$250,000 blocked.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 68, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

8. General licence banks and international licence banks supervised in origin by the Superintendencia must keep total capital funds of at least 8 percent and primary capital of at least 4 percent of risk weighted assets and contingent off balance sheet operations; the Board may change these ratios for all banks and the Superintendent may require a higher ratio for a specific bank. International licence banks under host supervision follow their home supervisor's ratio.
Example: B/.1,000,000,000 of risk weighted assets needs at least B/.80,000,000 of capital funds, of which B/.40,000,000 primary capital. / US$1 billion of risk weighted assets, US$80 million of capital funds.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), arts. 70, 71, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

9. Liquid assets must equal at least a percentage of gross deposits set by the Superintendencia, capped at 35 percent and set at 30 percent until it decides otherwise; deposits from the head office or foreign affiliates are excluded from the base. General licence banks must also hold assets in Panama equal to a percentage of local deposits (85 percent until the Superintendencia decides otherwise, maximum 100 percent).
Example: B/.500,000,000 of gross third party deposits requires B/.150,000,000 of liquid assets at the 30 percent rate. / US$500 million of deposits, US$150 million liquid.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), arts. 73, 78, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

10. Banks may freely set lending and deposit interest rates, and other laws or rules setting maximum interest rates do not apply to them; they must state the effective interest rate clearly in statements, contracts and when a nominal rate is advertised.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), arts. 79, 80, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

11. Loans, guarantees or other exposures to a single person or economic group may not exceed 25 percent of the bank's capital funds (30 percent for the banks of art. 97); loans secured only by the bank's own shares are prohibited.
Example: A bank with B/.80,000,000 of capital funds may lend at most B/.20,000,000 to one borrower and its group. / US$80 million of capital funds, US$20 million cap.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), arts. 94, 95, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

12. Banks may disclose information about clients or their operations only with their consent, except when required by a competent authority under the law, on their own initiative under anti money laundering and terrorist financing laws, to rating agencies, or to data processors (which inherit the duty of confidentiality).Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 111, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

13. Banks pay an annual regulation and supervision fee: general licence B/.30,000 plus B/.35 per million or fraction of total assets, the variable part capped at B/.100,000; international licence B/.15,000; representative licence B/.5,000. The Superintendencia may raise or lower the fee in line with its budget.
Cost to do it: Statutory tariff: B/.30,000 plus up to B/.100,000 (general), B/.15,000 (international), B/.5,000 (representation) a year; check the Superintendencia's current schedule, which it may adjust.
Example: A general licence bank with B/.2,000,000,000 of assets: B/.30,000 plus 2,000 x B/.35 = B/.70,000, a B/.100,000 statutory fee. / US$2 billion of assets, US$100,000 a year.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 22, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

14. Branches of foreign banks must appoint at least two general attorneys, both individuals resident in Panama and one of them Panamanian.Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 (texto único of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998 as amended by Decreto Ley 2 de 2008, the Ley Bancaria), art. 53, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

15. Clients of banks gained a new basic and non waivable right: not to declare a cancer history, nor have it taken into account, once five years have passed since the end of treatment without relapse.Ley 547 de 2026 art. 5, adding numeral 5 to art. 194 of Decreto Ley 9 de 1998, art. 194 numeral 5, 2026-09-08 official text · verified 2026-10-29 · changed: Added by Ley 547 of 8 September 2026 (Gaceta Oficial 30607-E), in force the day after promulgation; contract clauses that discriminate against people five years past cancer treatment are void.

Licence	What it allows	Minimum capital	Statutory annual fee
General	Banking anywhere in Panama and transactions with effect abroad	B/.10,000,000 (US$10,000,000)	B/.30,000 plus B/.35 per million of assets, variable part up to B/.100,000
International	Directing from Panama transactions that take effect abroad	B/.3,000,000 (US$3,000,000), B/.250,000 blocked at a state bank	B/.15,000
Representation	Representative office of a foreign bank, through a branch or 100 percent subsidiary	Not set in art. 68	B/.5,000

Panamanian banking licences under the Ley Bancaria (Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008).

Worked example

A foreign bank wants to serve Central American corporates from Panama without taking local deposits. An international licence needs B/.3,000,000 of capital (US$3,000,000), B/.250,000 of it deposited at Banco Nacional or Caja de Ahorros, plus home supervisor no objection.
If it later wants to lend to and take deposits from Panamanian residents it must convert to a general licence and raise capital to B/.10,000,000, then keep 30 percent liquid assets against gross deposits and 85 percent of local deposits invested in Panama.
Because the economy runs in US dollars, the bank has no currency mismatch between its dollar funding and dollar loans; for an Argentine parent, home country FX and tax rules on funding the subsidiary are covered at a high level in the Argentine guide.

Step by step

Obtain the home supervisor's authorisation or no objection.
File the application through a Panamanian lawyer with shareholder identity, fitness of directors, origin of capital, business plan and governance policies.
Await the newspaper notice and the 15 day objection period.
Use the 90 day temporary permit to register the company or branch with the word Banco in the Registro Público.
Pay in the minimum capital (and the B/.250,000 guarantee deposit for an international licence) and request the definitive licence.
Appoint two resident general attorneys for a branch, external auditors within the first three months of each fiscal year, and set up AML controls.

Common traps

Taking deposits or any funds from the public without a licence triggers closure and dissolution of the company 60 days after the marginal note, even if the business is called something other than a deposit.
Using the word Banco, in any language, in a company name without a licence is prohibited and the company can be dissolved.
Deposits from the parent or foreign affiliates do not count in the liquidity base, but local deposits drive the 85 percent local asset requirement for general licence banks.
The statutory fees and capital minimums can be adjusted by the Superintendencia by Acuerdo, so confirm the current schedule before budgeting.

Sources

← Capital markets, banking and credit in Panama: who regulates what, the main licences and the numbers that matterPublic offerings and listings in Panama: SMV registration, exempt offers, fees and the tax exemptions for registered securities →

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