Inverlink - IMAP Colombia Celebrates 40 Years of Pioneering Investment Banking
Founded in 1986 as Colombia’s first investment bank, Inverlink helped establish M&A advisory in a market where the discipline barely existed.
Forty years later, Inverlink - IMAP Colombia has completed more than 300 transactions across 11 countries in the Americas, with a combined value of more than USD 40 billion.
Its 40th anniversary therefore marks more than a milestone for one firm.
It reflects four decades of change in Colombia’s corporate finance market - and Inverlink’s role in helping shape it.
How Inverlink Helped Pioneer M&A Advisory in Colombia
Since its founding, Inverlink has advised on transactions linked to important stages in Colombia’s economic development. Landmark mandates include the privatization of Banco de Colombia, the opening of public utilities to private investment, the sale of Isagén to Brookfield, and the merger of Codensa and Emgesa.
Alongside major transactions, a significant part of the firm’s work continues to involve mid-sized and family-owned businesses, supporting owners through acquisitions, sales, mergers, and other defining strategic decisions. That combination of landmark mandates and long-standing relationships with business owners has helped Inverlink establish a distinctive position in Colombian investment banking and M&A.
40 Years of Investment Banking and M&A Across the Americas
From its beginnings in Bogotá, Inverlink has developed an increasingly regional footprint, with offices today in Bogotá, Panama City, and Miami. That growth has taken Inverlink well beyond its origins, while Colombia remains at the heart of the firm and its relationships.
“Conectar para Construir”: 40 Years of Relationships and Trust
Connection has always been central to Inverlink’s identity. The firm’s visual identity is built around the image of a bridge, representing the value of connecting people, businesses, and opportunities. That idea became the theme of its 40th anniversary celebration: “Conectar para construir” - connecting in order to build.
On 3 September, more than 200 business leaders from Colombia and across the region gathered at Bogotá’s historic opera house, Teatro Colón.
Rather than a conventional corporate anniversary event, Inverlink filled the main stage with thousands of candles for a chamber concert, accompanied by reflections on the firm’s journey, a short film, and an evening celebrating the relationships, trust and shared achievements built over four decades.
The thinking behind the celebration was simple: after 40 years, what endures is not only the transactions completed, but the people and relationships built around them.
IMAP Colombia: Connecting Local Expertise with Global M&A Opportunities
As IMAP’s partner in Colombia, Inverlink combines deep knowledge of Colombian and Latin American businesses with access to M&A expertise and relationships across the IMAP partnership in 50+ countries. That international connectivity is increasingly important as transactions become more cross-border and Latin American businesses seek investors, acquisition opportunities and strategic partners beyond their home markets.
For Inverlink, international growth is not simply about establishing offices in more countries. It is about being able to connect clients with the right opportunity, investor and expertise across markets.
What Comes Next for Inverlink? Regional Growth, Sector Expertise and Cross-Border M&A
“Building a firm and an institution, rather than simply closing individual transactions, is what matters most to us. We want Inverlink to endure over time and transcend all of us."
says Mauricio Saldarriaga, Managing Partner, Inverlink – IMAP Colombia
Forty years on, Inverlink is already looking towards its next chapter, which lies in the hands of a new generation of partners – Nicolás Gómez, Felipe Camacho and Enrique Vargas – who joined the firm as analysts and today lead it alongside Managing Partner Mauricio Saldarriaga.
The firm’s priorities include further internationalization, deeper sector specialization, and continued investment in the talent and institutional strength needed to build a business that can endure across generations. That makes the bridge at the heart of Inverlink’s identity as relevant to its future as it has been to its first four decades - connecting businesses, investors, markets, and generations to build what comes next.
Congratulations to our colleagues at Inverlink - IMAP Colombia on 40 years of pioneering investment banking.
