BLX Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior SA

PANAMA CITY, July 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones, S.A. ("Bladex") (NYSE:BLX), a leading provider of trade finance services for the Latin American and Caribbean region, announced today that its stock was recently added to the broad-market Russell 3000(R) Index according to the official membership list posted on http://www.russell.com/. Membership in the Russell 3000, which remains in place for one year, means automatic inclusion in the large-cap Russell 1000(R) Index or in the small-cap Russell 2000(R), as well as in the appropriate growth and value style indexes. Russell determines membership for its equity indexes primarily by objective, market-capitalization rankings and style attributes. Russell indexes are widely used by investment managers and institutional investors for index funds, and as benchmarks for both passive and active investment strategies. An industry-leading $4 trillion in assets are currently benchmarked to them. "This is a major step in supporting the liquidity of our stock, providing shareholders the opportunity to invest in a proxy for the growth of our dynamic region," stated Jaime Rivera, Chief Executive Officer of Bladex. About Russell Russell Investment Group aims to improve financial security for people by providing strategic advice, world-class implementation, state-of-the-art performance benchmarks and a range of institutional-quality investment products. With more than $200 billion in assets under management, Russell serves individual, institutional and advisor clients in more than 40 countries. Russell provides access to some of the world's best money managers. It helps investors put this access to work in corporate defined benefit and defined contribution plans, and in the life savings of individual investors. Russell's indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly. For more information on Russell indexes, go to http://www.russell.com/. About Bladex Bladex is a supranational bank originally established by the Central Banks of Latin American and Caribbean countries to support trade finance in the Region. Based in Panama, its shareholders include central banks and state- owned entities in 23 countries in the Region, as well as Latin American and international commercial banks, along with institutional and retail investors. Through March 31, 2007, Bladex had disbursed accumulated credits of over $146 billion. For further information, please access Bladex on the Internet at http://www.blx.com/ or contact: Bladex, Head Office Calle 50 y Aquilino de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama Attention: Carlos Yap S., Senior Vice President - Finance Tel.: (507) 210-8563, E-mail: -or- i-advize Corporate Communications, Inc. 82 Wall Street, Suite 805 New York, NY 10005 Attention: Melanie Carpenter / Peter Majeski Tel.: (212) 406-3690, E-mail: DATASOURCE: Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones, S.A. CONTACT: Carlos Yap S., Senior Vice President - Finance, Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones, +011-507-210-8563, ; or Melanie Carpenter or Peter Majeski, i-advize Corporate Communications, Inc., +1-212-406-3690, , for Bladex Web site: http://www.blx.com/

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