2026-03-19 | NCF-16Added · Updated
The Standards Committee of the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador issued Manual CNBCR-03/2026 to establish mandatory accounting standards for entities specialized in the deposit and custody of securities. The regulation requires these entities to apply International Financial Reporting Standards, utilize a specific decimal codification system for accounts, and maintain rigorous internal controls and legal bookkeeping. It further mandates the daily valuation of investment portfolios and the electronic submission of monthly trial balances to the Financial System Superintendence.
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CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
THE STANDARDS COMMITTEE OF THE CENTRAL RESERVE BANK OF EL SALVADOR,
CONSIDERING:
I. That in accordance with the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System, the Financial Supervision and Regulation System is created, which is constituted by the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador and the Financial System Superintendence, with the former, through the Standards Committee, being responsible for approving the necessary technical regulatory framework for the adequate application of the laws that regulate the members of the financial system and other supervised entities.
II. That Article 4, letter c) of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System establishes that the Financial System Superintendence has among its powers to conduct individual and consolidated supervision of the members of the financial system, as well as the supervision of other regulated subjects.
III. That Article 7 of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System establishes who is subject to the provisions of said Law and therefore to the supervision of the Financial System Superintendence.
IV. That Article 35, letter f) of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System establishes that it is the obligation of the supervised entities to adequately disclose the economic and financial reality, and to have the backing of their internal and external audits.
V. That Article 99, letter c) of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System establishes that it corresponds to the Standards Committee of the Central Reserve Bank to approve the Technical Standards for the preparation, presentation, and disclosure of Financial Statements and supplementary information of the members of the financial system; to determine the accounting obligations and the principles in accordance with which they must keep their accounts; and to establish criteria for the valuation of assets, liabilities, and the creation of provisions and reserves for risks.
VI. That in accordance with Article 101, fourth paragraph of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System, the powers to approve, modify, and repeal technical norms that must be complied with by the members of the financial system and other supervised entities are transferred to the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador.
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
THEREFORE,
by virtue of the regulatory powers conferred upon it by Article 99 of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System, AGREES to issue the following:
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES
SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF
SECURITIES
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Comprises the general application provisions in the recording of operations of Companies Specialized in the Deposit and Custody of Securities.
CHAPTER II
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM SUPERINTENDENCE AND PUBLISHED Comprises the provisions relative to the submission of financial statements to the Financial System Superintendence, their publication, among other provisions.
CHAPTER III
CHART OF ACCOUNTS
Comprises the list of accounts provided for the accounting of the respective operations.
CHAPTER IV
ACCOUNT APPLICATION MANUAL
Comprises the description of the concept of the accounts and the main applications by which they will be affected.
CHAPTER V
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Includes the models of Financial Statements.
CHAPTER VI
OTHER PROVISIONS AND VALIDITY
Comprises provisions corresponding to sanctions, repeals, unforeseen aspects, and validity.
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
A. OBJECTIVE
The objective of this manual is to provide Companies Specialized in the Deposit and Custody of Securities (Deposit and Custody Securities Centers) with the technical accounting treatment that allows the application of International Financial Reporting Standards, regarding the uniform recording of their transactions, preparation and presentation of their financial statements, and disclosure of their notes, thus providing a useful instrument for the analysis of information and decision-making by administrators, shareholders, the public users of the services, the Financial System Superintendence, and other interested parties.
B. APPLICATION
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
C. STRUCTURE, CODIFICATION, AND DESIGNATION
1.- DEFINITION OF COMPONENTS OF THE CHART STRUCTURE.
The Chart of Accounts has been structured based on a decimal codification system, with an account designation that contemplates different levels of aggregation, distinguishing:
Element: Identified by the first digit
Section: Identified by the first two digits
Account: Identified by the first three digits
Sub-account: Identified by the first four digits Sub-sub-account: Identified by the first five digits Detail: Identified by the first seven digits Sub-detail: Identified by the first nine digits
2.- ELEMENTS OF ACCOUNTING
The elements defined within the structure are associated with the rights, obligations, and equity of the Deposit and Custody Securities Centers, as well as the rights and obligations of clients who intermediate through the Deposit and Custody Securities Centers and changes in such elements. The established elements are presented below:
CODE DESCRIPTION
1 ASSETS
2 LIABILITIES
3 EQUITY
4 EXPENSES
5 INCOME
6 CONTINGENCIES OF COMMITMENTS AND DEBIT CONTROL 7 CONTINGENCIES OF COMMITMENTS AND CREDIT CONTROL 8 DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS, CUSTODY OF SECURITIES, AND OTHER RELATED INSTRUMENTS 9 OBLIGATIONS FOR DEPOSIT, CUSTODY OF SECURITIES, AND OTHER RELATED INSTRUMENTS
3.- GROUPING SECTIONS.
Identified by the second digit, starting from one (1), these sections are detailed below:
CODE DESCRIPTION
1 ASSETS
11 CURRENT ASSETS
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
12 NON-CURRENT ASSETS
2 LIABILITIES
21 CURRENT LIABILITIES
22 NON-CURRENT LIABILITIES
3 EQUITY
31 CAPITAL
32 CAPITAL RESERVES
33 REVALUATIONS
34 RESULTS
35 RESTRICTED EQUITY
36 OPTIONS ON SHARE-BASED PAYMENTS
4 EXPENSES
41 OPERATING EXPENSES
42 FINANCIAL EXPENSES
43 EXTRAORDINARY EXPENSES
44 INCOME TAX
5 INCOME
51 OPERATING INCOME
52 FINANCIAL INCOME
53 EXTRAORDINARY INCOME
6 CONTINGENCIES OF COMMITMENTS AND DEBIT CONTROL 61 DEBIT COMMITMENT CONTINGENT ACCOUNTS 62 CONTROL ACCOUNTS 7 CONTINGENCIES OF COMMITMENT AND CREDIT CONTROL 71 CONTINGENT AND COMMITMENT ACCOUNTS 72 CREDIT CONTROL ACCOUNTS 8 DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS, CUSTODY OF SECURITIES, AND OTHER RELATED INSTRUMENTS 81 FINANCIAL SETTLEMENT AND STOCK EXCHANGE OPERATIONS ACCOUNTS 82 ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE FOR SECURITIES DEPOSITED IN ADMINISTRATION AT THE DEPOSIT CENTER 83 ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE FOR OPERATIONS WITH SECURITIES 84 SECURITIES IN TRADITIONAL DEPOSIT AND ADMINISTRATION 85 MACRO-TITLES IN DEPOSIT AND ADMINISTRATION 86 DEMATERIALIZED SECURITIES IN DEPOSIT AND ADMINISTRATION 87 SECURITIES IN DEPOSIT AND ADMINISTRATION AT EXTERNAL CUSTODY CENTERS 88 SECURITIES IN DEPOSIT WITHOUT ADMINISTRATION 89 INSTRUMENTS AND DOCUMENTS IN CUSTODY THAT GUARANTEE REGISTERED ISSUANCES AND OTHER OBLIGATIONS 9 OBLIGATIONS FOR DEPOSIT, CUSTODY OF SECURITIES, AND OTHER RELATED INSTRUMENTS 91 OBLIGATIONS FOR FINANCIAL SETTLEMENT AND STOCK EXCHANGE OPERATIONS 92 OBLIGATIONS WITH CLIENTS FOR THE EXERCISE OF RIGHTS
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
93 OBLIGATIONS TO PAY FOR OPERATIONS WITH SECURITIES 94 OBLIGATIONS FOR SECURITIES DEPOSITED IN ADMINISTRATION BY BROKERAGE FIRMS 95 OBLIGATIONS FOR SECURITIES DEPOSITED IN THE PRIMARY MARKET FOR TRADING 96 OBLIGATIONS FOR SECURITIES DEPOSITED IN ADMINISTRATION BY SECONDARY DIRECT PARTICIPANTS 97 OBLIGATIONS FOR SECURITIES DEPOSITED IN CUSTODY WITHOUT ADMINISTRATION BY BROKERAGE FIRMS 98 OBLIGATIONS FOR SECURITIES DEPOSITED IN CUSTODY WITHOUT ADMINISTRATION BY SECONDARY DIRECT PARTICIPANTS 99 OBLIGATIONS FOR INSTRUMENTS AND DOCUMENTS IN CUSTODY THAT GUARANTEE REGISTERED ISSUANCES AND OTHER OBLIGATIONS
4.- LEDGER ACCOUNTS.
Group homogeneous economic events, identified by the third digit starting with zero (0), allowing a maximum of ten accounts to be grouped per section of the accounting elements; an example of account codification is presented below:
CODE DESCRIPTION
110 CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS
111 BANKS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
112 RESTRICTED AVAILABLE FUNDS
5.- SUB-ACCOUNTS.
Identified by the fourth digit, they represent aggregations of economic events that provide valuable financial information, codified from digit zero (0), allowing up to ten sub-accounts to be generated from the ledger account; an example of codification is presented below:
CODE DESCRIPTION
110 ACCOUNT CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS
1100 SUB-ACCOUNT PETTY CASH
1101 SUB-ACCOUNT GENERAL CASH
6.- SUB-SUBACCOUNTS.
Identified by the fifth digit, they represent aggregations of economic events that provide financial information, allowing up to ten sub-subaccounts to be generated, grouped within the sub-accounts; this level of codification will be used in the present structure only for the following group of accounts, sub-accounts, and sub-subaccounts:
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
CODE TYPE DESCRIPTION
620 ACCOUNT
OBLIGATIONS FOR SECURITIES DELIVERED IN
SUB-CUSTODY
6200 SUB-ACCOUNT FIXED INCOME SECURITIES
62000 SUB-SUBACCOUNT OWN
62001 SUB-SUBACCOUNT THIRD PARTIES
6201 SUB-ACCOUNT VARIABLE INCOME SECURITIES
62010 SUB-SUBACCOUNT OWN
62011 SUB-SUBACCOUNT THIRD PARTIES
720 ACCOUNT SUB-CUSTODIANS OF SECURITIES
7200 SUB-ACCOUNT SUB-CUSTODIANS OF FIXED INCOME SECURITIES 72000 SUB-SUBACCOUNT OWN 72001 SUB-SUBACCOUNT THIRD PARTIES 7201 SUB-ACCOUNT SUB-CUSTODIANS OF VARIABLE INCOME SECURITIES 72010 SUB-SUBACCOUNT OWN 72011 SUB-SUBACCOUNT THIRD PARTIES
7.- DETAIL.
Identified by the seventh digit, they represent aggregations of economic events that provide valuable financial information, allowing up to 199 detail accounts to be generated, grouped within the sub-accounts and the ledger account; an example of codification is presented below:
CODE TYPE DESCRIPTION
1110 SUB-ACCOUNT BANKS AND OTHER LOCAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS 1110000 DETAIL DEPOSITS IN CHECKING ACCOUNTS 1110010 DETAIL DEPOSITS IN SAVINGS ACCOUNTS 1110020 DETAIL TIME DEPOSITS
8.- SUB-DETAIL OPENING OF ANALYTICAL ACCOUNTS FOR BANKS.
Bank accounts will be generated in accordance with the following list, assigning the eighth and ninth digits for identification.
DIGITS FINANCIAL INSTITUTION
00 CENTRAL RESERVE BANK
01 AGRICULTURAL BANK S.A.
02 DAVIVIENDA SALVADOREÑO BANK S.A.
03 MORTGAGE BANK OF EL SALVADOR
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
DIGITS FINANCIAL INSTITUTION
04 CUSCATLAN BANK OF EL SALVADOR, S.A.
05 AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT BANK
07 CITIBANK, N.A., EL SALVADOR BRANCH
08 CENTRAL AMERICA BANK, S.A.
09 ATLANTIDA BANK EL SALVADOR, S.A.
10 ABANK EL SALVADOR, S.A.
11 CREDICOMER, S.A.
12 AZUL BANK OF EL SALVADOR, S.A.
13 PROMERICA BANK S.A.
15 BANK OF NEW YORK
16 STATE STREET
17 JP MORGAN CHASE
18 CLEARSTREAM BANKING
19 INDUSTRIAL BANK EL SALVADOR, S.A.
20 APOYO INTEGRAL BANK, S.A.
Generating the sub-details or control analytical account immediately to the corresponding Bank, as an example:
CODE TYPE DESCRIPTION
1110 SUB-ACCOUNT BANKS AND OTHER LOCAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS 1110000 DETAIL DEPOSITS IN CHECKING ACCOUNTS 111000001 SUB-DETAIL AGRICULTURAL BANK ACCOUNT No. 1110010 DETAIL DEPOSITS IN SAVINGS ACCOUNTS 111001001 SUB-DETAIL AGRICULTURAL BANK ACCOUNT No.
If new Banks arise, they will be added using the correlation of the last assigned code.
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
This codification is applicable to all accounts, sub-accounts, and details that represent deposits of the Deposit and Custody Securities Centers in financial institutions, whether for their own account, for deposit and custody operations, or for the settlement of stock exchange operations.
D. CLOSURE OF THE ECONOMIC YEAR
The economic and accounting period will comprise from January 1 to December 31 of each year.
E. ACCOUNTING RECORDS
ACCOUNTING BOOKS
The movement and balance of accounts will be recorded in the main books, and that of sub-accounts in auxiliary books as deemed necessary. The main books that must be legalized are the following:
a. Journal Book. b. Ledger Book (If they consider it convenient, they may legalize the books in one single JOURNAL-LEDGER).
c. Financial Statements Book.
Accounting records must comply with what is established in Title II, Book Two, of the Code of Commerce, insofar as applicable. In particular, in the Financial Statements Book, the Balance Sheet, the Statement of Results, the Statement of Cash Flows, the Statement of Changes in Equity, the Statement of Stock Exchange Operations, and Deposit and Custody of Securities and other related instruments, and the corresponding notes must be posted, in accordance with what is established in Article 442 of the Code of Commerce. The figures posted in this book must be presented in absolute values including cents, in a comparative manner with the figures of the previous year.
TAX BOOKS
The books of legal requirement, in accordance with the Law on Tax on the Transfer of Movable Goods and the Provision of Services, must comply with what is established in Article 141 of the Tax Code and Section Five of Chapter VII of the Regulation for the application of the Tax Code, which are mentioned below:
a) Purchase Registration Book, b) Sales to Taxpayer Registration Book,
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
c) Sales to Consumer Registration Book.
ADMINISTRATIVE BOOKS
Deposit and Custody Securities Centers must keep, legalize, and complete, in addition to the accounting and tax books established above, the following books dictated by the Code of Commerce, for which case we have:
a) Minutes Book of the General Shareholders' Meeting. b) Minutes Book of the Board of Directors. c) Shareholders Registration Book. d) Capital Increase and Decrease Book (if applicable). The Minutes of the General Shareholders' Meeting and the Board of Directors, in addition to complying with what is stipulated in Article 246 of the Code of Commerce, must be posted in the corresponding Legal Books no later than 15 days after said sessions are held. All of the above without prejudice to other legal records required by the Superintendence, in accordance with its legal powers, or required by other mandatory legal norms.
REGARDING THE REGISTRATION OF OPERATIONS
The nature of each of the operations performed by the entity must be respected at the time of its accounting, according to the following rules:
a) If the operations are strictly those of the entity, only those accounting accounts defined in the Balance Sheet and Statement of Results will be used, i.e., Equity Accounting Accounts. b) If the operations respond to operations related to third-party accounts regarding deposit and custody, and settlement of operations, only those accounting accounts defined in the Statement of Stock Exchange Operations, and Deposit and Custody of Securities and other instruments will be used. c) At no time can Accounts of an Equity nature and Operational Accounts be combined in the same accounting entry.
F. INTERNAL CONTROL APPLIED TO ACCOUNTING RECORDS Accounting records must contain the necessary detail regarding the characteristics of assets, liabilities, commitments, income, and expenses so that all information contained in the different statements to be rendered can be clearly derived from them, which will maintain the necessary correlation both among themselves, when appropriate, and with that accounting base. The entity must maintain at all times an auxiliary detail of each of the accounting sub-accounts, with the purpose of having an adequate integration of the records.
CNBCR - 03 /2026
NCF - 16
ACCOUNTING MANUAL FOR COMPANIES SPECIALIZED IN THE DEPOSIT AND CUSTODY OF SECURITIES Approval: 19/03 /2026 Validity: 06 /04 /2026 Alameda Juan Pablo II, between 15 and 17 Norte Ave, San Salvador, El Salvador. Tel. (503) 2281-8000 www.bcr.gob.sv
Likewise, inventories or details of the different items will be kept, independent of the books of an obligatory nature required by Salvadoran legislation. For these purposes, entities will establish internal control systems directed to reasonably ensure the reliability of accounting records, as well as the correct integration of operations.
Therefore, independent of the accounts specified to form the financial statements, the details deemed necessary for the preparation of the rest of the complementary informative statements will be established, thus developing an analytical accounting that provides sufficient information for the calculation of costs and returns of the different centers, products, business lines, or other aspects of interest for adequate management control.
G. REGISTRATION AND ARCHIVING OF ACCOUNTING DOCUMENTATION The operations registered in the books listed in letter E must be backed by the corresponding supporting documentation and comply with the norms established in the Code of Commerce. Operations will be posted as they are carried out, this without prejudice to the sanctions, fines, and others that Deposit and Custody Securities Centers may incur for such delays established in accordance with the applicable legal norms by other governmental entities.
H. SEPARATION OF INCOME AND EXPENSES
To associate income with the corresponding expenses, it has been segregated as follows:
ORDINARY INCOME AND EXPENSES
Operating Income - Operating Expenses
Financial Income - Financial Expenses
EXTRAORDINARY INCOME AND EXPENSES
Extraordinary Income
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Source: Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero — original document · Summary generated with machine assistance and reviewed before publication; the authoritative text is the regulator's original document. How RegAlert works
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