The financial sector sent a strong message to the public and private sectors on the trust as the magna carta to guarantee financing for projects in the countryduring the closing day of the National Infrastructure Congresswhich culminated yesterday in Cartagena.
(Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo proposes road plan for the Llanos).
In the panel moderated by the director of Portfolio, Francisco Miranda, the leaders of the bank Juan Carlos Mora, president of Bancolombia; Luis Carlos Sarmiento Gutiérrez, president of Grupo Aval; Javier Suárez, president of Davivienda and Antonio Silveria, manager of Physical Infrastructure of the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF), discussed the main challenges of the sector, in which not only the current macroeconomic situation stands out, but also how it is faced.
Juan Carlos Mora, president of Bancolombia requested a Joint work between the public and private sectors when it comes to providing confidence to international markets.
“We are in a complex and challenging situation, but the signals that we send to the market regarding the institutional framework of the country, respect for contracts, institutional changes that have a macroeconomic detriment, will determine how we move forward. Without that trust, it will be very difficult to move forward, if the markets change, it would make financing very complex in the future, which ends up affecting all of us,” he said.
(Infrastructure sector recognizes businessman Luis Carlos Sarmiento).
In addition, Mora added: “the international market is expecting Colombia, what this curve implies is an expectation, how we respond to those expectations as a country will respond and determine our future,” he said.
For his part, Javier Suárez, president of Davivienda, although he recognized the importance of Mora’s message, pointed out that interest rates are also a challenge that has affected credit institutions and it does not seem to be a situation that will end soon.
THERE IS WILL
“The challenge is in interest rates and liquidity. Fundamentally, there is an interest in accompanying the concessions, there is, it is an attractive sector from our economic activity that brings benefits to the country. Interest rates are definitely going to make closing projects complex and the big task is to find a way to find a solution, while interest rates drop, which will take a while,” he added.
Likewise, the president of the entity joined the voices of his colleagues and insisted on a solid institutionality in their messages.
“For financial entities, the capital market is essential, we take public savings and convert it into infrastructure, but part of that savings comes from institutional savings from pension funds, finally, that institutionality and the capital market , it is essential that it be maintained, to keep the rates at rational levels,” said Suárez.
Finally, the president of Grupo Aval, Luis Carlos Sarmiento Gutiérrez, pointed out the importance of a work in synergy between the sectors of the economy and banking.
“In fact, during the last decade, of the total financing required for large infrastructure works, worldwide, on average, 77% was provided by non-governmental banks, issuances in capital markets, and capital contributed by private investors” , he stressed.
Prior to this meeting, the president of the Colombian Chamber of Infrastructure, Juan Martín Caicedo, highlighted the creation of a fund for the financing of infrastructure SMEs, thanks to the competition of Bancóldex, Sumitomo Bank, the FDN and the CAF-, with the one that seeks, in a short time, to leverage the companies that require it, through credits with such favorable and competitive rates.
BRIEFCASE
