Bonds aimed at small investors are positioning themselves as another option to invest, and these are their conditions.
An investment option is Treasury Bonds for small investors.
According to the National Stock Exchange, SA (BVN, SA), these titles have had more public demand than in previous years.
Rolando San Román, general manager of the BVN, SA, explained that in 2021 they were placed, at the end of the year, Q100 million; In 2022, the figure grew to Q150.6 million, although it then went down, and in 2023 were Q134.2 million. While in 2024, the placement was Q58.8 million.
According to the Executive, this option has had a new impulse, since from January to April 30, 2025, the figure placed in all 2024 was already exceeded and has been located at Q75.5 million.
Data from the Ministry of Finance (MINFIN), updated to May 16, 2025, report that of the Q500 million authorized for this year, Q81.49 million have been placed, being available Q418.51 million.
The Exchange Manager stated that the greatest demand for last year could be due to the fact that in 2025 the minimum and maximum limits were extended to invest.
The minimum amount was before Q10 thousand and now the interested party can invest from Q5 thousand.
The maximum was Q500 thousand, but for this year it is Q1 million.
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With this, the placement form is from Q5 thousand, with increases in multiples of Q1 thousand, to a maximum of Q1 million.
Although these bonds are aimed at individual persons – and they can acquire them – the legislation changed and now their tenure is allowed to legal persons. That is, bonds can be bought by an individual person, but if you need to sell them, you can negotiate them and the purchase can be made by a legal person.
In addition, the small investor must choose an authorized stock exchange, which can be found in The BVN electronic site, SA
With the chosen agent you can consult the requirements, intermediation costs or commissions.
Each agent can establish different commissions, which range between 0.25% and 0.50%.
Treasury bonds are tax exempt.
Recommendations
Given the different investment options through the Stock Exchange, Iván Higueros, CEO of the Zona Trading firm, provides some recommendations:
- Investment objective clarity
Before making a decision, it is important to have clarity on the investment objective: Are you looking for long -term profitability? Liquidity? A conservative option or is it willing to assume more risk? Once these aspects have been defined, it can be analyzed if a specific bonus is adjusted to the profile. It is also recommended to know the issuer well and rely on a stock market or advisor that can explain the technical details of the instrument.
It is key to review the risk rating of the issuer, know the term of the bonus and the interest rate it offers. Another important aspect is to know if the bonus is in Quetzales or dollars, because that can imply exchange risk. In addition, you have to carefully read the terms of the issuance: payment dates, if there are partial amortizations, if it can be sold before expiration, among others.
- What aspects to consider to decide not to invest
If the issuer has a low risk rating, little public financial information or a history of payment problems, it is convenient to evaluate other options. Also if the bonus is long -term and the person may need money before, it may not be the most convenient, especially if there is no active secondary market where to sell it easily.
One of the advantages is that better yields can be obtained than in traditional banking products, in addition to supporting national companies in their growth plans. However, like any investment, there are risks: the main one is that the issuer does not comply with payments (credit risk). There may also be difficulty selling the bonus before expiration (liquidity risk), or that rates rise and that affects the value of the bond if you want to sell ahead of time.
- Investor’s commitments
The investor does not acquire additional obligations beyond maintaining his investment. That is, you do not have to make payments or assume commitments, but you must keep in mind the intermediation cost of stock agents, interest payment dates, the expiration of the bonus and that in some cases will not easily leave if you need the money before.
- Importance of this type of investment
They allow to mobilize private savings towards productive financing. That is, instead of having immobilized money or in a low performance savings account, it can be invested in instruments that not only offer profitability, but also drive real projects in the country. In addition, they contribute to the transparency and strengthening of the capital market in Guatemala.