SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 6-K
Report of Foreign Private Issuer
Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 Or 15d-16 Of The
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the month of February, 2004
BANCO LATINOAMERICANO DE EXPORTACIONES, S.A.
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its Charter)
LATIN AMERICAN EXPORT BANK
(Translation of Registrant's name into English)
Calle 50 y Aquilino de la Guardia
Apartado 6-1497
El Dorado, Panama City
Republic of Panama
(Address of Registrant's Principal Executive Offices)
(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports
under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.)
Form 20-F |X| Form 40-F |_|
(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information
contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing information to the Commission
pursuant to Rule 12g-3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.)
Yes |_| No |X|
(If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant
in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b). 82__.)
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereto duly authorized.
February 9, 2004
Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones, S.A.
By: /s/ Pedro Toll
--------------------------
Name: Pedro Toll
Title: General Manager
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BANCO LATINOAMERICANO DE EXPORTACIONES, S.A.
(BLADEX) DECLARES QUARTERLY DIVIDENDS
Panama City, Republic of Panama, February 9, 2004 -Banco Latinoamericano de
Exportaciones, S.A. (BLADEX) (NYSE: BLX) today reported that at a meeting held
on February 3, 2004, its Board of Directors authorized a dividend policy whereby
dividends will be declared and paid to shareholders on a quarterly basis. In
accordance with this new policy, the Board of Directors declared a quarterly
cash dividend of US$0.10 per common share payable on April 5, 2004 to
stockholders of record as of March 26, 2004. As of January 31, 2004, BLADEX had
39,352,738 outstanding common shares of all classes.
BLADEX's Chief Executive Officer, Jaime Rivera, stated, "With the profitability
of our core business in foreign trade services firmly on track, and with the
support afforded to the bank by its re-capitalization, we are pleased to resume
BLADEX's traditional practice of providing our shareholders with dividends. We
will continue to manage our capital through a prudent balance of risk and return
considerations, in light of market and business trends, including those related
to our portfolio in Argentina. We will take action when appropriate."
BLADEX is a multinational bank established by the Central Banks of Latin
American and Caribbean countries. Based in Panama, its shareholders include
central and commercial banks in 23 countries of the region, as well as
international banks and private investors.
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BLADEX, Head Office, Calle 50 y Aquilino de la Guardia, Panama, Panama
Attention: Carlos Yap, Vice President, Finance and Performance Management
Tel. No. (507) 210-8581, e-mail: cyap@blx.com,
-or-
i-advize Corporate Communications, Inc., 80 Wall Street, Suite 515,
New York, NY 10005
Attention: Melanie Carpenter or Pete Majeski
Tel: (212) 406-3692, Email: bladex@i-advize.com
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