New microsite gives foreign investors English-language access to Colombian capital markets

A new English-language microsite aimed at foreign portfolio investors in Colombia’s capital markets went live June 3, the product of a public-private working group that has been operating since late 2023. The platform, called “Foreign Portfolio Investor,” is accessible through the website of the Financial Superintendency of Colombia (Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia, SFC) at superfinanciera.gov.co.

The microsite offers information in English on the structure of the Colombian capital market, its participants, operating procedures covering enrollment, ongoing participation and divestment, issuers and issuances, links to statistical data, applicable regulations, and frequently asked questions. The initiative operates under the broader program titled Mercado de Capitales en Colombia, Colombia Destino de Inversión (Capital Markets in Colombia, Colombia Investment Destination).

The web page can be reached at: https://www.superfinanciera.gov.co/publicaciones/10115712/foreign-portfolio-investor/ 

“Historically, foreign investors have faced the challenge of understanding the functioning of the Colombian securities market,” said SFC Financial Superintendent César Ferrari (above photo). “The new microsite is a first step in addressing this challenge by offering, in clear English, information necessary to make foreign portfolio investments in Colombia.”

The working groups behind the project brought together several government bodies, including the Banco de la República, the Financial Regulatory Unit (Unidad de Regulación Financiera, URF) of the Ministry of Finance, and the National Tax and Customs Directorate (Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales, DIAN). From the private sector, the Securities Market Self-Regulator (Autorregulador del Mercado de Valores, AMV) and the Colombian Stock Exchange (Bolsa de Valores de Colombia, BVC: BVC) contributed to the platform’s development.

Carlos Emilio Betancourt Galeano, Director General of the DIAN, said the microsite addresses a core barrier to attracting foreign capital. “Providing clear and easily accessible information reduces barriers, improves understanding of the regulatory environment and strengthens the confidence of international investors,” he said.

URF Director Larisa Caruso said the platform addresses language as a structural obstacle to market participation. “This microsite represents an important milestone to strengthen the internationalization of the Colombian capital market and will allow foreign investors to better understand the regulation and the particularities of the local market, promoting greater transparency, trust and access to information, while contributing to reducing entry barriers associated with language,” she said.

AMV President Hernán Alzate described the launch as part of a longer-term positioning effort. “It represents a decisive step to position Colombia as an attractive and reliable destination for international investment,” he said. “Facilitating access to clear and timely information is critical to strengthening foreign investor confidence in an increasingly interconnected world.”

Andrés Restrepo Montoya, CEO of the BVC, framed the microsite as part of the exchange’s ongoing efforts to draw international capital. “To attract investment we must also facilitate access to clear and reliable information,” he said. “This is an important step to bring foreign investors closer to the Colombian capital market.”

The initiative comes as Colombia’s capital markets face scrutiny from international investors and ratings agencies over the country’s fiscal trajectory. The working group structure that produced the microsite has been active since late 2023, with the SFC serving as lead coordinator across multiple public and private stakeholders.

Proposal would reset how banks weigh social and climate costs

The Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia (SFC) has presented a proposal to create a national system of socio-environmental prices that supervised financial institutions would apply when evaluating and analyzing private and public development projects in Colombia. The regulator argues that the country’s financial system faces the challenge of financing projects that generate long-term social returns, not only private profitability.

The proposal was unveiled in Bogotá on May 14, 2026, during the forum Precios socioambientales: una herramienta para la inversión sostenible en Colombia, hosted at the regulator’s headquarters. Participants included Superintendent of Finance César Ferrari; Daniel Schydlowsky, professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Raúl Castro, professor at the Universidad de los Andes; Andrés Vera, technical vice president of Asobancaria; Ricardo Lara Manzano, director of infrastructure and energy for the Andean region at IDB Invest; and Andrés Trejos, economic studies coordinator at the SFC.

Ferrari noted that the methodology, also known as “shadow pricing,” gained prominence during the second half of the twentieth century before falling out of favor, and is now resurfacing globally as social and environmental dynamics increasingly affect business and the financial system. “The concept of ‘shadow prices’ is regaining importance because we are seeing the effects of climate change on the economy and on competition in business across all sectors,” Ferrari said.

“The concept of ‘shadow prices’ is regaining importance because we are seeing the effects of climate change on the economy and on competition in business across all sectors.” — César Ferrari, Colombian Superintendent of Finance

Schydlowsky explained that shadow prices measure the value of goods and services when market failures distort interest rates, exchange rates, or fiscal balances. The approach is designed to correct for the gap between observed market prices and the true economic and social cost of resources.

What the SFC is proposing

Trejos argued that social project evaluation provides a technical basis for discussing the relevance of investment initiatives in the context of public policy and the financial system, and helps select projects that raise social welfare with economic efficiency and environmental sustainability. “It is possible to prioritize projects beyond private profitability, incorporating general social welfare and, in particular, environmental sustainability,” he said.

The SFC’s proposal to build a socio-environmental pricing system for Colombia includes estimates of the social valuation of six productive factors and fundamental variables: labor, public revenue, investment, foreign exchange, carbon, and the social discount rate.

Under the proposed framework, projects would receive more favorable evaluation if they are labor-intensive — especially when they absorb idle or underemployed workers — if they generate or save foreign exchange through expanded exports or efficient import substitution, if they strengthen public revenue and the state’s capacity to provide public goods and regulation, or if they reduce carbon footprint or deliver net benefits in climate mitigation and adaptation.

The proposal does not yet carry the force of regulation. The SFC presented the framework as a methodology for supervised entities — including banks, insurers, and pension fund managers — to incorporate into their internal project evaluation processes alongside conventional financial analysis.

Headline photo: The installation of more than 886 solar systems benefiting 4,000 users. Photo credit: One Inversión Social.

Grupo EPM, the multi-utility conglomerate owned by the municipality of Medellin, reported consolidated revenue of $40.6 trillion COP (approx. $11 billion USD) for the full year 2025. Despite a year characterized by climate variability and increased regulatory pressure, the group saw net income rise to $5.3 trillion COP, a 9% increase compared to 2024 results. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) reached $11 trillion COP ($2.98 billion USD).

The Medellín utility unit, EPM, contributed $20 trillion COP in revenue and $4.9 trillion COP in net income. Management attributed the stability of these figures to a diversified portfolio. Power generation remains the primary driver of profitability, accounting for 49% of net income, followed by energy distribution at 27%. The water, sewage, and waste management sectors contributed 15%, while transmission and natural gas accounted for 3% and 1% respectively.

In 2025, Grupo EPM obtained results that confirm its ability to advance in complex scenarios, reflecting work to achieve lasting efficiencies.” — John Maya Salazar, General Manager of EPM

Financial leverage remained within contractual covenants. The debt-to-EBITDA ratio for the group closed at 2.9x, comfortably below the 3.5x threshold required by many credit agreements. For the individual EPM entity, the ratio stood at 3.5x. This solvency allows the organization to continue its capital expenditure program, which saw $5 trillion COP ($1.36 billion USD) invested in infrastructure and social programs throughout the year.

John Maya Salazar, General Manager of EPM (photo courtesy EPM)

A significant portion of the capital budget was directed toward the Hidroituango hydroelectric project. Approximately $1 trillion COP was allocated to Stage 2 of the project, specifically turbine units 5 through 8. Beyond energy, the company continued funding the Unidos por el Agua and Unidos por el Gas initiatives, which target utility access for vulnerable populations in the department of Antioquia and other regions.

Dividend and Fiscal Transfers

During the 2025 fiscal period, EPM executed transfers totaling $2.6 trillion COP to the Distrito de Medellín. These funds, representing 55% of the utility’s 2024 net income, serve as a primary funding source for the municipal development plan. Additionally, the group generated $21.8 trillion COP in total added value across its areas of operation, including $3.7 trillion COP in taxes, fees, and contributions to the state.

The company is currently undergoing a structural reorganization intended to modernize its operating model. According to management, this transition is designed to improve strategic efficiency as the group faces future macroeconomic shifts. The group’s economic footprint in 2025 included $6.7 trillion COP paid to suppliers and the financial system, along with $3 trillion COP dedicated to direct and indirect employment costs. Total reinvestment into the group’s various subsidiaries reached $5.6 trillion COP to ensure infrastructure modernization.

Financial data and sustainability reports are routinely filed with the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia. Interested parties can find further information on the company’s investor relations portal or through the Alcaldía de Medellín official website.

Above video: An aerial view of EPM’s Hidroituango hydroelectric dam(video © Loren Moss)