INTERNATIONAL ISSUANCE VALIDATES THE ATLÁNTIDA FINANCIAL GROUP PRESTIGE

The prestige that the international bond issuance brings to Inversiones Atlántida is huge and consolidates the corporate governance rigor that we will be facing in the future.

JCA (interviewer): An unprecedented event in Honduras; Inversiones Atlántida has made its first bond issuance within the global market. Could you tell me how was the process of this important transaction successfully performed?

G. Bueso: The investment bankers thought it was a formidable story: Embracing the possibility of having the holding company that clusters the largest financial group in the country, led by the oldest and most prestigious bank, going out to the international markets testing its solidity, solvency and strength. Undoubtedly, performing this transaction by the holding company, which owns 87% of Banco Atlántida and 100% of the rest of the subsidiaries, represented a unique opportunity to prove both the economic solvency of the Republic of Honduras and ours.

Along this process, we were accompanied by Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. with the transaction successfully handled by John Tonelli, KPMG in the audit part and Shearman & Sterling on the legal side, well represented by the attorneys Stuart Fleischmann and Grissell Mercado; and as counterpart, the Attorney Walter Bodden, Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Bank, the Vice President of International Business, Ildoira de Bonilla; David Bueso, Vice President of Operations and Rafael Núñez, Vice President of Finance and Administration. The teamwork, directed by the extensive experience of Lawyer Arturo Medrano, Director of the Financial Group, was invaluable.

JCA: The issuance was successfully listed. What type of investors have acquired the Note and from which regions of the world do they come from?

G. Bueso: Issuance under the 144A modality requires all investors to be qualified but allows investors from all over the world to participate and investors come from several regions.

The composition of the investors at the time of the subscription was varied, with some that handle portfolios from US $ 300 million, to one that manages a portfolio of more than US $ 5 trillion. One of the things that took us by surprise was the speed with which the buying and selling transactions moved, due to the attractiveness caused by the bind issuance.

JCA: For which reasons has the Singapore Stock Exchange been chosen, instead of the New York Stock Exchange?

G. Bueso: Mainly, for pragmatism purposes. It was much more agile; timewise, to list the issue on the Singapore Stock Exchange. After the gap was opened in the Singapore Stock Exchange by the Central American Bank of Economic Integration, issuances such as this one, are coming with more and more frequency to this square, which is developing as a first order stock market. We thought about Europe because there is a transition process in the legislation, which worked for us safely and better in terms of time.

JCA: What was the fixed rate?

G. Bueso: The fixed rate was 8.25% in nominal terms and 8.5% in effective terms. The negotiation of the rate is based on consensus, the investment banker communicates an indicative rate, after which the investors express their interest. Fortunately, there was enough interest in the issuance, so it should be noted that there was a significant over-demand, and we set the limit amount of US $ 150 million.

JCA: How will you use these resources?

G. Bueso: To promote an expansion of the Atlántida Financial Group at regional level. In El Salvador, 75% of AFP Confía, was acquired a few months ago, and we have also acquired a stock exchange position, which belonged to Grupo Poma. At the same time, we have already constituted, with a transaction license, an investment fund management company. We are waiting for the BCR (Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador) to complete the regulatory framework to start with its own products. Also, we are in the process of completing the acquisition of a small bank in El Salvador and of buying an insurance company.

At the end of this process, we will have almost the same financial footprint in El Salvador, that we currently have in Honduras.

JCA: Could you tell us about the regional expansion plans, in the short term?

G. Bueso: In short, we are considering expanding operations to other Central American and South American countries.

G. Bueso: Certainly, validation by international markets confirms this. The quality of investors also highlights this. The first investors of this issue represent funds of incredible prestige, that manage a lot of money, of a very conservative profile, some are firms that operate since the banking industry started in the United States.

JCA: At group level, the effectuated issue will be reflected in the assets of the holding, which will allow to elevate its ranking among other financial groups? What do you think about this?

G. Bueso: With this operation there will be a notable increase in the assets of the Group. It is a long-term competition and the way in which the financial industry will evolve will require a greater critical mass, unless the banks are concentrated in very specific niches. We will need to make strong investments in technology and our ability to understand the technological trends that will prevail in the world.

JCA: In your opinion, how does Honduras benefit from this first bond issuance, made by Inversiones Atlántida in the global capital market?

G. Bueso: In our case we were benefited by the improvement of the risk rating of Honduras, at an appropriate time Standard & Poor's announced that the macroeconomic activity of our country is supported by the new long-term rating with stable outlook. Being the first corporate issue in the country, opens the door for other economic groups to do the same. For financial groups it is not that difficult, since when we were supervised, our information was already public. In any case, with this first private issuance, a Honduran flag has been planted in the international securities market.