The Montepio Group.

Get to know the Montepio Group present in various business sectors, from banking to insurance, from health and well-being to asset management, of which the Bank is a part and in which Montepio Associação Mutualista is the main shareholder.

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Montepio Associação Mutualista
Founded in 1840, it is the largest Portuguese association and main shareholder of the Montepio Group. Its business is developed and based on complementary and voluntary social protection – Mutualism – and aligned with values such as associativism, solidarity and humanism.
Fundação Montepio
Founded in 1995, it promotes the development of partnerships and grants support to the Social Sector of the Economy by identifying and promoting good social intervention practices.
Banco Montepio
Founded in 1844, it is the oldest Portuguese banking institution, focused on improving the well-being of families, companies and Social Economy institutions. It also holds a number of equity stakes in financial institutions, through Montepio Holding.
Montepio Seguros
Established in 2013, it holds instituions that cnduct the insurance and reinsurance business and manage pension funds, including Lusitania – Companhia de Seguros, N Seguros, Lusitania Vida and Futuro. Montepio Seguros.
Residências Montepio
Operating in the health services sector, it is the entity that carries out the management of Residential Centers and the provision of personal services at home and permanent assistance.
Montepio U Live - Residências para Estudantes
Developed in 2016, it manages the project to provide quality accommodation to students in the center of large cities and at an adjusted price.
Montepio Gestão de Ativos

A group entity specialising in financial asset management,  with a focus on the management of investment funds.

 

It has concentrated the Group's securities investment fund management and discretionary portfolio management activities since 2004.

Montepio Gestão de Activos Imobiliários, ACE
Created in 2014, it is a Group entity that carries out the integrated management of the entire portfolio of real estate assets.
Bolsimo Gestão de Ativos
Specialised entity focused on collections activities and credit assessment.
Montepio Crédito
Montepio Crédito – Instituição Financeira de Crédito, S.A. (Montepio Crédito), 100% controlled by Banco Montepio, through Montepio Holding, SGPS, S.A., ensures the offer of specialised loans in the automotive, home and services, and equipment sectors, complemented for a set of solutions aimed at Individual Customers, Companies and Institutions in the Social Economy Sector.

Frequently asked questions.

Are the Montepio Mutualist Association and Banco Montepio a single institution?

No, they are two institutions with different missions, activities, products and supervisors, in which Banco Montepio is an entity of the Montepio Group, and Associação Mutualista is the main shareholder. 

The  Montepio Mutualist Association was founded in 1840 and is today the largest Portuguese association with more than 600 thousand members. It is a social economy entity - it is neither a financial institution, nor an insurance company or pension fund management company - and is considered to be of public utility. The Montepio Mutualist Association  is also subject to the legislation in force for Private Social Solidarity Institutions (IPSS), in particular the Code of Mutualist Associations (CAM).

Banco Montepio - founded in 1844 - is the oldest Portuguese banking institution. It is a Savings Bank focused on improving the well-being of families, companies and Social Economy entities. An institution with mutualist origins and roots, determined to be more than a simple banking institution and to make a difference in the Social Economy sector. Banco Montepio also holds a number of equity stakes in entities that provide banking and financial services.

Who supervises the two institutions?

The Montepio Mutualist Association  is under the supervision of a member of the Government with competence in matters of social security, currently from the Ministry of Labor, Solidarity and Social Security - General Directorate of Social Security.

  

The Code of Mutualist Associations regulates a new financial supervision regime to be applied to the Montepio Mutualist Association, with a view to ensuring a gradual adaptation of these institutions to the new regulatory framework. It thus enshrines a transitional period of 12 years - during which the Insurance and Pension Funds Supervisory Authority has powers to verify compliance with the adaptation plan - at the end of which, subject to the legally established requirements, mutual associations concerned, such as The Montepio Mutualist Association, are now fully subject to the financial supervision regime of the insurance sector.

  

Banco Montepio is a banking institution under the supervision of the Bank of Portugal, the Securities Market Commission and the Insurance and Pension Funds Supervisory Authority.

Are the management bodies of the Mutualist Association the same as those of the Bank?
No, there is a total separation of the management bodies of the two institutions.
Do the two entities share the same brick-and-mortar space?
No, Banco Montepio and the Montepio Mutualist Association have separate head offices. The headquarters of Banco Montepio are located at Rua Castilho, no. 5 in Lisbon, while the headquarters of the Associação Mutualista Montepio are located at Rua Áurea, no. 219 to 241, in Lisbon.
Are Banco Montepio and Associação Mutualista two distinct brands?
Yes. In terms of external image, Caixa Económica Montepio Geral registered the new commercial name “Banco Montepio” and presented a new brand and new image with yellow as the institutional color, distinguishing itself from the Montepio Mutualist Association (Associação Mutualista Montepio), which is orange.
How can I distinguish a Mutualista Association manager from a Bank manager?
In the Banco Montepio branch network, specialised service stations were created for members of the Montepio Mutualist Association, which are duly marked.
Do the two entities have different websites?
Yes. Each entity has its own website. The website of the Montepio Mutualist Association (Associação Mutualista Montepio) is www.montepio.org and Banco Montepio is www.bancomontepio.pt.
What is the difference between the activity of the Montepio Mutualist Association and that of the Bank?

The Montepio Mutualist Association is an entity that integrates the Social Economy sector, like all IPSS and other mutualist associations, in which business activity comprises creating a private social security system for its members, made possible through modalities such as the individual mutual funds, which can be subscribed exclusively by members, and are approved by the members themselves at the General Meeting of Members, as well as by the respective guardianship, where they are registered.

 

Banco Montepio, in turn, is a credit institution - namely a Bank Savings Bank governed by the Legal Regime of Savings Banks (DL no. 190/2015) - whose main business activity consists of receiving deposits or other refundable funds from the public and in granting credit on its own, as well as the ancillary services of providing financial intermediation and insurance distribution services.

If the Mutualist Association is unable to pay, are members subject to a public guarantee system, such as the Deposit Guarantee Fund or the Investor Compensation System?

No. In these cases, under the terms and for the purposes of article 30 of the Code of Mutual Associations, it is mandatory to change the Benefits Regulation with a view to reestablishing the necessary technical-financial balance of the modality. To this end, the Board of Directors of the Montepio Mutualist Association promotes changes to the Benefits Regulations of the Montepio Mutualist Association, with this change being subject to deliberation at the General Assembly.

 

If the  Montepio Mutualist Association is unable to pay the repayments of capital and income from the modality, these are guaranteed exclusively by the assets of Associação Mutualista Montepio and, therefore, are subject to its liquidity and solvency risks.

Is being a Bank customer different from being a member of the Mutualist Association?

Yes, being a Banco Montepio customer is different from being a member of the  Montepio Mutualist Association.

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The Bank's customers, in addition to being able to subscribe to banking products, can also subscribe to other types of products, including the Montepio Mutualist Association modalities. To subscribe to mutualist modalities, the Bank's customers must be members of the Montepio Mutualist Association.

  

Admission to membership in Associação Mutualista Montepio implies subscribing to a mutualist modality and grants the member a set of rights and obligations, as well as benefits arising from membership.

Can I be a Bank customer and not be a member?
 Yes, there is no obligation of becoming a member when opening an account at Banco Montepio. 
Can I subscribe to the Mutualist Association products without being a Bank customer?
Yes, you do not need to be a Banco Montepio customer to be a member and subscribe to the Montepio Mutual Association  products.
Where can I consult the regulatory framework of the two institutions?
If you want to know more about the regulatory context of the two institutions, you can consult: the Code of Mutualist Associations; the Insurance and Pension Funds Authority; the Statutes of the  Montepio Mutualist Association; the General Regime for Credit Institutions and Financial Companies; and the Legal Regime of Savings Banks.