Davivienda Logo

Davivienda began after Colombia’s May 1972 decrees No. 678 and 679, which introduced the UPAC system for inflation-indexed savings and long-term housing finance. On August 1, 1972, Corporación Colombiana de Ahorro y Vivienda Coldeahorro was registered in Bogotá, with Banco de Bogotá, Seguros Bolívar, and Colseguros among its founders. It opened to clients on November 15, 1972.

On January 30, 1973, the institution was renamed Corporación Colombiana de Ahorro y Vivienda Davivienda. The name came from “da vivienda,” meaning “provides housing,” and the red house logo, Casita Roja, became its main public symbol. In 1994, the bank introduced credit cards and launched the slogan “su dinero puede estar en el lugar equivocado.”

During the 1980s and early 1990s, Davivienda remained focused on mortgages. Financial liberalization later allowed savings corporations to enter universal banking. On July 1, 1997, it became Banco Davivienda S.A., entering a market already dominated by Bancolombia and Banco de Bogotá. In 2006, it acquired Banco Superior and won the auction for Granbanco S.A., known as Bancafé. The deal closed on August 27, 2007, bringing corporate, agribusiness, Panama, and Miami operations.

On January 24, 2012, Davivienda agreed to buy HSBC units in Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Honduras for $801 million, expanding into Central America. By late 2012, it had 572 branches in Colombia and one in the United States. In 2023, Holding Davivienda Internacional was created in Panama. In 2024–2025, Davivienda agreed to absorb Scotiabank Colpatria and Scotiabank’s units in Panama and Costa Rica, giving Scotiabank a 20% stake in its capital.