REGAR

What REGAR does

REGAR (Asociación Iberoamericana de Garantías REGAR) is a non-profit association and the largest network of guarantee institutions in Iberoamerica. Formally constituted on 5 December 2017 in Porto, Portugal, the network traces its origins to 1996 and currently aggregates 19-22 associated institutions across 11 countries: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Peru, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay. Its core products are the annual Foro Iberoamericano de Garantías (currently in its XXVIII edition), the Observatorio Estadístico de los Sistemas de Garantía (an annual statistical observatory aggregating data from 40+ institutions), the Programa de Pasantías (international internships for member staff), the Reconocimiento REGAR Pablo Pombo (annual award program), a publications repository, and the Conexión REGAR blog. The network is officially registered with the Secretaría General Iberoamericana (SEGIB) under number RRI/002.

The organization does not develop or deploy proprietary technology platforms. Its technology footprint is limited to a public website (redegarantias.com), the blog, and social media distribution channels (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter/X, WhatsApp, Telegram). REGAR's value proposition centers on convening, knowledge transfer, and policy coordination rather than software delivery. Its 2024-2026 leadership comprises Pedro Pisonero Pérez (President), Luz Stella Lozano Chona (Secretary General), Verónica Wejchenberg (Vice President Latin America), and Francisco Fortín (Vice President Central America). Strategic partners include ALIDE, SELA, CAF, SEGIB, AECM, IFC, BID, and the World Bank Group.

REGAR's business model is non-commercial. As a member-based non-profit association, it is funded through membership fees and institutional contributions from its member guarantee institutions and strategic partners; there is no direct pricing for SME end users. The entity has six employees, no parent company, and no subsidiaries. Indirect beneficiaries are micro, small, and medium enterprises (MiPyMEs) across Iberoamerica that access credit through the 22 member guarantee institutions (SGRs, national/provincial guarantee funds, and development banks) coordinated through the network.

Name

REGAR

Legal name

Asociación Iberoamericana de Garantías REGAR

Website

https://redegarantias.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

REGAR is the largest Iberoamerican network of guarantee institutions, aggregating 19-22 members across 11 countries (including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Spain, Portugal). It convenes annual forums, publishes a Statistical Observatory, runs internships, and grants the Pablo Pombo award to strengthen SME access to financing through guarantee systems.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Porto

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

REGAR is a non-profit association that organizes and supports the Iberoamerican community of guarantee institutions through annual forums, a statistical observatory, an internship program, sector publications, and the Pablo Pombo Award. Its activities center on knowledge exchange, member benchmarking, and coordinated representation of the guarantee sector vis-à-vis public and private counterparts.

Product overview

REGAR (Red Iberoamericana de Garantías) is a network organization, not a software product company. It functions as a coordination and knowledge-sharing mechanism among guarantee institutions across 11 Iberoamerican countries. The network's offerings include annual Ibero-American Forums (Foros Iberoamericanos de Garantías) that convene guarantee institutions and stakeholders; the Statistical Observatory of Guarantee Systems (Observatorio Estadístico) publishing annual data reports; an International Internship Program (Programa de Pasantías) for professional exchanges; the Pablo Pombo Award (Reconocimiento REGAR Pablo Pombo) recognizing excellence in guarantee systems; and publications and studies repository. These services collectively support the exchange of information, knowledge, experiences, and policies related to SME financing and guarantee access.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Foro Iberoamericano de Garantías: Annual forum organized by REGAR for guarantee systems and SME financing across Iberoamerica
• Reconocimiento REGAR Pablo Pombo
• Programa de Pasantías REGAR
• Conexión Regar

Products and services

• Foros Iberoamericanos de Garantías Annual in-person knowledge-exchange forum where member guarantee institutions, regulators, and multilateral partners meet to share experience and benchmark practice. Target audience: directors and senior staff of guarantee and counter-guarantee institutions.
• Observatorio Estadístico de los Sistemas de Garantía Statistical data and benchmarking resource that aggregates guarantee-sector indicators across Iberoamerican member institutions. Target audience: guarantee institutions, regulators, multilaterals, and researchers.
• Programa de Pasantías REGAR Internship and exchange program that places staff of member guarantee institutions at peer institutions across the network for short-term capacity-building assignments. Target audience: technical and operational staff of member institutions.
• Publicaciones y Estudios REGAR Analytical publications and studies produced by REGAR on the Iberoamerican guarantee sector, including the Observatorio reports and congress papers. Target audience: guarantee institutions, regulators, and multilateral partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 40 institutions share data annually for the Statistical Observatory of Guarantee Systems
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• SEGIB (Secretaría General Iberoamericana)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 October 2011REGAR is officially registered in the Registro de Redes Iberoamericanas (Register of Iberoamerican Networks) of SEGIB under registration number RRI/002, dated 24 October 2011. SEGIB provides the umbrella framework for the use of the 'Red Iberoamericana' denomination.
• ALIDE (Asociación Latinoamericana de Instituciones Financieras para el Desarrollo)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerALIDE is a key institutional partner of REGAR, providing support for the Foro Iberoamericano and collaborative initiatives aimed at strengthening guarantee mechanisms for SMEs in Latin America. An ALIDE-REGAR cooperation agreement was signed in November 2018 to work together in support of Latin American SMEs.
• SELA (Sistema Económico Latinoamericano y del Caribe)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSELA, through its IBERPYME Programme, has been a long-standing institutional partner of REGAR, contributing to the Foro Iberoamericano and promoting SME development policies across the region. SELA participates in the network's governing structure.
• CAF (Banco de Desarrollo de América Latina y El Caribe)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCAF is listed as a strategic partner of REGAR and has participated in Forums and publications. CAF provides development financing and technical support for guarantee system strengthening across Latin America and the Caribbean.
• AECM (Asociación Europea de Caución Mutua)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAECM represents European mutual guarantee systems and cooperates with REGAR on knowledge exchange between European and Latin American guarantee institutions. José Fernando Figueiredo, President of AECM, has participated in REGAR Forums.
• IFC (International Finance Corporation)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIFC is listed as a strategic partner of REGAR, contributing expertise on SME finance and guarantee mechanisms from a global development perspective.
• BID (Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBID is a strategic partner of REGAR, providing financial and technical support for guarantee system development in Latin America and participating in Forums and studies.
• World Bank GroupmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe World Bank Group is a strategic partner of REGAR, offering global expertise and financing for SME support programs and guarantee system strengthening across Iberoamerica.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• European Investment Fund (EIF): The EIF is the European Union's specialized vehicle for SME financing, operating guarantee and securitization schemes across Europe. It is comparable to REGAR's member institutions (e.g., Iberaval, IBERAVAL SGR) and represents the European model of state-backed guarantee infrastructure that REGAR's network aspires to mirror in Iberoamerica.
• SELA (Sistema Económico Latinoamericano y del Caribe): SELA is a Latin American and Caribbean intergovernmental body that promotes regional economic cooperation and supports SME development via its IBERPYME Programme. As a long-standing institutional partner that participates in REGAR's governance, SELA operates at a wider regional policy level with overlapping SME finance focus.
• ALIDE (Asociación Latinoamericana de Instituciones Financieras para el Desarrollo): ALIDE is the broader regional association of Latin American development finance institutions, of which REGAR is a specialized sub-network. ALIDE covers all development banking (not just guarantee systems), making it a wider umbrella organization with overlapping membership and strategic partnership with REGAR since 2018.

Direct peers

• European Microfinance Network (EMN): EMN is a European network association of microfinance institutions, sharing REGAR's association-based convening model, member-driven governance, and focus on financial inclusion for underserved SMEs. It is structurally analogous though focused on microfinance rather than guarantee systems specifically.
• AECM (Asociación Europea de Caución Mutua): AECM is the European counterpart to REGAR—a mutual guarantee association representing European mutual guarantee institutions. Already a strategic partner of REGAR, AECM convenes European guarantee stakeholders, publishes regional statistics, and facilitates cross-border knowledge exchange, making it the most structurally analogous peer.

Emerging players

• African Guarantee Fund (AGF): AGF is a regional guarantee facility for African SMEs, providing partial credit guarantees and capacity building to financial institutions across Africa. It is comparable in mission (SME credit access via guarantees) and operates a similar institutional model in a different geography, making it a relevant emerging player peer.
• SME Finance Forum (IFC): Hosted by the International Finance Corporation, the SME Finance Forum is a global knowledge-sharing platform for SME finance, including guarantee institutions. It overlaps with REGAR in convening, data collection, and best-practice dissemination but operates at a global rather than Iberoamerican scale.

Others

• Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB): CEB is a multilateral development bank with a strong focus on social development and SME financing in Europe. It is an adjacent enabler in the SME guarantee ecosystem and a potential source of technical partnerships comparable to REGAR's relationships with CAF, IFC, and BID.
• CAF (Banco de Desarrollo de América Latina y El Caribe): CAF is a Latin American development bank and a strategic partner of REGAR. While not a peer in the network-association sense, CAF operates guarantee and credit programs for SMEs that compete with or complement REGAR's member institutions, making it a thematically adjacent organization in the same ecosystem.

Regional players

• Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE): ANDE is a global network of organizations that support SME development, with regional chapters including Latin America. While its scope is broader than guarantee systems, ANDE shares REGAR's convening, knowledge-sharing, and member coordination model across the small-and-growing business ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/redegarantias
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/redegarantias

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about REGAR