President Nayib Bukele (2019–present) has openly mocked the 14 families, calling them “the traditional corrupt elite” and “the ones who looted the country.” His populist rhetoric resonates with a generation that grew up on stories of oligarchic abuse.

For many Salvadorans, the names on the list may have changed, but the structure has not. The same last names still appear on the boards of the country’s most powerful corporations. The same neighborhoods produce nearly every finance minister. And the same fear of land reform—first forged in 1932—still haunts political debate.

The "Families" did not just own the coffee plants; they owned the entire supply chain. They controlled the banks that financed the harvests, the railways that transported the beans, and the processing plants ( beneficios ) that prepared them for export. This vertical integration meant that when coffee prices boomed, the Families became astronomically wealthy. When prices crashed, the workers starved.

While the specific roster of "14" varies depending on the historian, certain surnames are inextricably linked to the Salvadoran oligarchy. These names remain prominent in the country today.

To understand the families, one must understand their commodity: .

However, studies by the Fundación Nacional para el Desarrollo (FUNDE) show that economic concentration remains extreme. Many of the original family names have simply evolved into modern holding groups: (Poma family), Grupo de Sola , Grupo Agrisal , Grupo Cuscatlán , and Banco Agrícola (once controlled by the Dueñas family). They own the malls, the banks, the poultry farms, the beverage distributors, and the media outlets.

The stories of these 14 families from El Salvador demonstrate the importance of cultural heritage and family traditions in the face of adversity. Despite facing various challenges, these families have shown remarkable resilience and adaptability, preserving their cultural identity and passing it down to future generations. This study highlights the significance of cultural preservation and the need to support and promote the rich cultural heritage of El Salvador.

Yet Bukele himself has courted many of the same business groups, and his administration has not pursued serious antitrust or land reform. Some of the 14 families’ descendants have quietly adapted, diversifying into logistics, energy, and even crypto services—while maintaining their seats on private club boards in San Benito and Santa Elena.

A 2021 investigation by El Faro found that just five business groups—most with roots in the original 14—control over 40% of El Salvador’s non-financial corporate assets.

Not exactly—but their descendants remain powerful.

The traditional "landowning" power of these families began to shift during the (1979–1992). Land reforms and the nationalization of banks temporarily weakened the old guard, leading many members to flee into exile in places like Miami or Guatemala City.

For decades, the Families ruled through the military. The military protected the landowners' property rights, and the landowners funded the military. However, by the 1970s, this arrangement began to fracture.