Countries › Panama › Guide › 10. Capital markets and finance › Capital markets, banking and credit in Panama: who regulates what, the main licences and the numbers that matter

Capital markets, banking and credit in Panama: who regulates what, the main licences and the numbers that matter

Argentina. For full detail on Argentina, go to The Argentine Thread.

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

Panama's dollarized financial centre is built on three regulators: the Superintendencia de Bancos (banks, trust companies), the Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores (issuers, brokers, funds) and the Superintendencia de Seguros y Reaseguros (insurers), with the Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias licensing non bank finance companies and credit bureaus. Banks need B/.10,000,000 of capital for a general licence and set interest rates freely; public offers need SMV registration, and registered securities traded on an exchange enjoy tax exemptions. Movable collateral and security trusts give lenders strong, registrable security.

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
Interest rate ceiling for banks	None (rates set freely) textDecreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008 art. 79, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Securities regulator	Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores textTexto Único DL 1 de 1999 art. 2, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Minimum cash capital for an insurer	5000000 PABLey 12 de 2012 art. 41, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Minimum paid capital for a trust company licence	150000 PABLey 21 de 2017 art. 26, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Minimum paid capital of a non bank finance company	500000 PABLey 42 de 2001 art. 28, 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. Only holders of a banking licence may carry on banking in or from Panama, and nobody may take funds from the public without a licence or legal exemption; licences are general, international or representation.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, 41, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

2. Minimum paid capital: B/.10,000,000 for a general banking licence and B/.3,000,000 for an international licence.
Cost to do it: B/.10,000,000 or B/.3,000,000 (US$10,000,000 or US$3,000,000).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

3. Banks set lending and deposit rates freely; maximum rate laws do not apply to them.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. 79, 2008-04-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

4. The Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores has exclusive competence to regulate and supervise issuers, investment funds, intermediaries and other securities market participants.Texto Único del Decreto Ley 1 de 1999 (Ley del Mercado de Valores), art. 2, 1999-07-08 official text · verified 2026-10-29

5. Public offers to persons domiciled in Panama must be registered with the SMV unless exempt (state securities, private placements to 25 offerees and 10 buyers a year, institutional investors and others).Texto Único del Decreto Ley 1 de 1999 (Ley del Mercado de Valores), arts. 128, 129, 1999-07-08 official text · verified 2026-10-29

6. Gains on registered securities sold through an exchange are not taxable, and interest on registered securities placed through an exchange is exempt; other interest on registered securities bears a 5 percent final withholding.Texto Único del Decreto Ley 1 de 1999 (Ley del Mercado de Valores), arts. 334, 335, 1999-07-08 official text · verified 2026-10-29

7. Insurance on property and persons located in Panama must be placed with authorised insurers, which need B/.5,000,000 of cash capital.Ley 12 de 3 de abril de 2012, arts. 41, 153, 2012-04-03 official text · verified 2026-10-29

8. Trust companies need a Superintendencia de Bancos licence, B/.150,000 of capital and a B/.250,000 guarantee.Ley 21 de 10 de mayo de 2017, arts. 12, 26, 27, 2017-05-10 official text · verified 2026-10-29

9. Movable property mortgages over specific or generic assets, inventory and receivables are perfected by registration, rank by registration time and may be enforced out of court if agreed.Ley 129 de 31 de diciembre de 2013, arts. 4, 31, 41, 43, 2013-12-31 official text · verified 2026-10-29

10. Non bank lenders to the public need MICI authorisation and B/.500,000 of paid capital.Ley 42 de 23 de julio de 2001, arts. 1, 28, 2001-07-23 official text · verified 2026-10-29

11. Since 9 September 2026 banks, finance companies and insurers may not discriminate against clients five years past cancer treatment without relapse.Ley 547 de 8 de septiembre de 2026, arts. 5 to 8, 2026-09-08 official text · verified 2026-10-29 · changed: New law published in Gaceta Oficial 30607-E on 8 September 2026, amending the Ley Bancaria (art. 194), Ley 42 de 2001 (art. 51) and Ley 12 de 2012 (arts. 243, 246).

Activity	Regulator	Main law	Key number
Banking (general, international, representation)	Superintendencia de Bancos	Decreto Ejecutivo 52 de 2008	B/.10,000,000 or B/.3,000,000 capital
Trust business	Superintendencia de Bancos	Ley 21 de 2017	B/.150,000 capital, B/.250,000 guarantee
Public offers, brokers, exchanges, funds, managers	Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores	Texto Único del Decreto Ley 1 de 1999	0.020 percent registration fee
Insurance and reinsurance	Superintendencia de Seguros y Reaseguros	Ley 12 de 2012	B/.5,000,000 cash capital
Non bank lending to the public	Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias	Ley 42 de 2001	B/.500,000 capital
Credit bureaus	Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias	Ley 24 de 2002	Data purged after 7 years

Who licenses what in Panamanian finance (sourced on the linked pages).

Worked example

A foreign group funding a Panamanian subsidiary can lend from abroad (no FECI, 12.5 percent effective withholding on interest), borrow from a local bank at a freely agreed rate plus 1 percent FECI, or issue SMV registered bonds on an exchange so that investors receive interest tax free.
Lenders typically take a movable property mortgage over inventory and receivables plus a guarantee trust over real estate.
For Argentine groups, the Argentine side of financing and FX is covered at a high level in the Argentine guide; Panama imposes no exchange controls on either direction.

Step by step

Pick the activity and regulator from the table.
Check whether the plan involves taking funds from the public (bank licence) or offering securities to Panamanian domiciliaries (SMV registration).
Read the detailed page for capital, fees and timelines.
Coordinate tax treatment with the taxes section.

Common traps

Deposit taking without a licence leads to closure and dissolution of the company.
An offer from abroad to Panamanian domiciliaries is an offer in Panama.
Insuring Panamanian risks abroad without authorisation carries a fine of ten times the premium.

Sources

← Customs penalties and audits in Panama: 50 percent surcharge on errors, five year post clearance audits, and contraband as a crime from B/.500,000Banks in Panama: general, international and representative licences, B/.10 million capital, liquidity and free interest rates →

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