The 10 Largest Latin American Banks

Here is a list of the 10 largest Latin American and Caribbean Banks in terms of total assets. The six Brazilian banks dominate the ranking. Mexico has three banks in the top 10. The list also includes Grupo Aval, a Colombian financial holding company.

10. Santander Mexico ($68 billion in assets)

Grupo Financiero Santander México, SAB de CV is the 10th largest bank in Latin America and the largest financial institution in Mexico. The company provides a wide range of retail and corporate banking products and services to about 14 million customers. It offers personal and business loans, mortgages, credit cards, deposits products and more. As of January 15, 2018, it had a market capitalization of $10 billion.

9. Banorte ($72 billion in assets)

Grupo Financiero Banorte, S.A.B. de C.V. is the ninth largest Latin American bank with head offices in Mexico City and Monterrey. As of December 2017, it employed approximately 28,000 people and served over 12 million customers through about 1,150 branches and 7,500 ATMs nationwide.

8. Grupo Aval ($77 billion in assets)

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores S.A. is the eighth largest banking group in Latin America and the largest financial conglomerate in Colombia with about 14 million customers (11 million in Colombia and 3 million in Central America), 78,700 employees, 1,800 branches and 5,700 ATMs. Grupo Aval controls Banco de Bogotá, Banco de Occidente, Banco Popular, Banco AV Villas, and Corficolombiana.

7. BBVA Bancomer ($105.7 billion in assets)

Grupo Financiero BBVA Bancomer S.A. de C.V is the biggest bank in Mexico and the seventh largest bank in Latin America and the Caribbean. It provides a full range of banking, securities and financial products and services to over 400,000 companies, government entities and 20 million retail customers in 32 states of the country. With over 30,000 employees, it has approximately 1,840 branches and 11,600 ATMs nationwide. The company was established in 1932 and is headquartered in Mexico City.

6. Banco Santander (Brasil) ($205 billion in assets)

Banco Santander (Brasil) S.A. is the largest division of Spanish giant Santander in Latin America. With more than 30 million customers, it is the sixth largest Latin American bank in terms of total assets. It operates in all segments of financial market through a network of about 2,250 full service branches, 1,170 mini branches and approximately 13,800 ATMs.

5. Brazilian Development Bank ($273.4 billion in assets)

Headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, BNDES is the fifth largest bank in Latin America by assets. It provides financial support to Brazilian companies and administration entities. The bank has international offices in London (the United Kingdom), Montevideo (Uruguay) and Johannesburg (South Africa).

4. Banco Bradesco ($383 billion in assets)

With approximately 109,000 employees, Banco Bradesco S.A. is the fourth largest bank in Latin America. It serves over 73 million customers through a network of more than 5,000 branches. The company was established in 1943 and is headquartered in São Paulo.

3. Caixa Econômica Federal ($400 billion in assets)

Caixa Econômica Federal (or CAIXA) is the third largest bank in Latin America. It is a state-owned Brazilian bank founded in January 1861. With 109,000 employees, it serves more than 85 million checking and savings account holders through over 4,300 agencies and 3,200 electronic service outlets. CAIXA is the manager of most Brazilian lotteries.

2. Itaú Unibanco ($438 billion in assets)

Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. is the largest private bank in Brazil and the second largest bank in Latin America. With about 95,000 employees, it operates over 5,000 full service branches and CSBs and over 46,000 ATMs (Including ESBs and Banco24Horas ATMs) in Brazil and 18 other countries including 7 countries in Latin America.

1. Banco do Brasil ($441 billion in assets)

Banco do Brasil S.A., established in 1808, is the oldest bank in Brazil and the biggest bank Latin America. It is controlled by Federal Government and serves over 62 million customers through 16,600 service points in all Brazilian municipalities. It also has extensive presence worldwide with business units and branches and in 24 countries. As of January 15, 2018, it had a market capitalization of over $30 billion.