Banco Compartamos, a microfinance bank that was established in Mexico in 1990, reported a net profit of MXN 515 million (USD 41.6 million) for the fourth quarter of 2010 compared to MXN 516 million (USD 42.5 million) for the same quarter of 2009. The company attributed the flat results to an increase in hiring and more spending on salaries, bonuses and training. The number of employees at Banco Compartamos increased to 9,770, which is 33 percent higher than in the previous year. Net profit for the year increased by 26 percent to MXN 1.88 billion (USD 154 million) compared to calendar 2009.

Banco Compartamos also reported that it wrote off past-due loans totaling MXN 65 million (USD 5.4 million) during the final quarter of 2010 compared to MXN 59 million (USD 4.9 million) during the same period in 2009. The bank’s total loan portfolio increased by 28 percent to MXN 9.76 billion (USD 803 million) in 2010 while the number of customers rose by 31 percent to 1.96 million. Banco Compartamos added microinsurance, home-improvement loans and a debit card offering to its product line in 2010.

By Julie Moksim, Research Associate

About Banco Compartamos: Banco Compartamos is a microfinance bank based in Mexico that was founded in 1990. It offers group and individual loans in rural and urban areas. Banco Compartamos provides loans to low-income people for business and home improvement purposes. It also offers voluntary savings and insurance products. The company made its initial public offering (IPO) in 2007 on the New York and Mexican stock exchanges in a transaction worth USD 467 million, and, as of December 2010, has a total loan portfolio of MXN 9.76 billion (the equivalent of USD 803 million).

Sources and Additional Resources;

Wall Street Journal Online: “Mexico’s Compartamos 4Q Net Profit Flat as Expenses Rise” by Anthony Harrup, February 23, 2011, http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110223-709515.html

MicroCapital.org Brief, January 24, 2011: Mexican Microfinance Bank Compartamos Banco Looks to Expand in other Latin American Nations, http://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-mexican-microfinance-bank-compartamos-banco-looks-to-expand-in-other-latin-american-nations/

MicroCapital.org Brief, November 24, 2010: Eyeing International Expansion, Mexican Microfinance Bank Compartamos Banco Directs Shares to Holding Company, http://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-eyeing-international-expansion-mexican-microfinance-bank-compartamos-banco-directs-shares-to-holding-company/

MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe Profile: Banco Compartamos

http://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Compartamos+Banco

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