This is the decision of the Financial Superintendency regarding the merger of Davivienda and Scotiabank.

The Financial Superintendency has already made a decision regarding the merger process between Davivienda and Scotiabank, a transaction that was announced at the beginning of this year (January 6) and that will allow the integration of the operations of the Canadian entity in Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica with those of Casita Roja in those same jurisdictions.

The decision by the Colombian financial authority joins that of regulators in El Salvador, and it is expected that decisions from other jurisdictions, such as Panama and Costa Rica, will be announced in the coming weeks, allowing progress to be made on this transaction, which to date is one of the largest in the country.

In El Salvador, regulatory authorities have already approved the merger , while in Colombia, the Superintendency of Finance has also decided to give the boards of both banks the green light to continue with the process, which is expected to close before the end of 2025.

This was confirmed to EL TIEMPO by César Ferrari, Financial Superintendent, after stating that he is only waiting for a concept to communicate his decision to the entities.

" We've already approved it," the official commented, noting that he sees no problem with the deal, which he considered "healthy and reasonable for the market and the competition" needed for the financial sector to reach greater depth, a goal the Superintendency of Finance has been working toward for more than two years.

Although the integration of the two banks' operations will only be in Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica, approval is also required from the authorities of El Salvador and Honduras, since Davivienda also has operations there, but not Scotiabank.

As a reminder, the agreement approved by the parties will allow Scotiabank to become a shareholder in Davivienda, with an approximate 20 percent stake and representation on its Board of Directors.

In an interview with EL TIEMPO, Francisco Aristeguieta, one of Scotiabank's key players in the integration process with Banco Davivienda, stated at the time that once the transaction is finalized, the book value of that stake will be $1.2 billion.

And he added: "Once this phase is over, there will be significant benefits for our clients, with a value and service proposition, where there are additional tools, so all of this is something that the approximately 26 million clients that the integrated entity will have will see as positive. It will be a very positive transition in which the first year of the process we will build those new benefits, then an investment platform will come, of course, to consolidate ourselves in the products in which the integration will automatically give us a leadership position , there is a nice opportunity for investment and capacity development where we will work together to achieve it."

With the merger, Davivienda's assets are projected to reach nearly $60 billion, representing a 40 percent increase in its total operations. In Colombia, assets are expected to grow by 30 percent, while in Costa Rica and Panama, the estimated increases are 90 and 180 percent, respectively.

This move reinforces Casita Roja's geographic diversification strategy, leaving 70 percent of its assets in the country and 30 percent in Central America. Today, Davivienda and Scotiabank serve 27.4 million customers in the markets where they operate.

Another development in this operation involves the creation of an entity that would lead the credit card business in Colombia, among other things, because the deal includes the agreement Scotiabank Colpatria has with the Codensa credit card company.

Thus, Davivienda will move from fourth place in that market, where it has 1.54 million cards issued, to first place, with more than 3.14 million. Currently, this market is led by Bancolombia with nearly 2.43 million active credit cards by the end of April 2025. Banco Falabella follows with 1.74 million, Colpatria in third place with 1.6 million, and Banco de Bogotá in fifth place with 1.17 million cards, according to data from the Superfinanciera (Superintendency of Finance).