Panama’s international banking center registered loan growth of 11.9% year-on-year in the first half of 2015.
The center’s loan portfolio amounted to US$6.37bn at the end of June, the banking regulator said in a report. Total assets climbed 10.8% year-on-year to US$114bn.
The center is made up of 91 banks of which some focus on the domestic loan market and others on offshore banking.
Loans issued by banks in the domestic market rose 9.7% compared with 1H14 and lending to the private sector was up 12.1%. Of the domestic loans, 1.4% were past-due at the end of June.

The center’s combined profits grew 2.5% in the same six-month period to US$806mn.