Top-5 Banks in Brazil

Brazil is a very large and developing financial market. It is an emergent economy and the banks play a vital role in accelerating the pace of development. An overview of the top 5 banks in Brazil, in terms of total assets, is provided below.

1. Itaú Unibanco

Banco Itaú acquired Unibanco in 2008 and rebranded itself as Itaú Unibanco. The market value of Itaú Unibanco increased more than 100%, making it one of the top ten banks and financial service providers in the world. Itaú is the largest bank of Latin America on the basis of market capitalization and assets. It is based in São Paulo and it operates more than 3500 branches and 28000 ATMs.

Itaú has more than 96000 employees and over 15 million clients. Itaú Unibanco has $378 billion in assets, making it the largest bank in Brazil in 2020. Itaú provides commercial and corporate banking as well as assets management and capitalization schemes along with insurance.

2. Banco do Brasil

Banco do Brasil was established in 1808 and currently it is based in Brasilia. It is among the largest and oldest banks in Brazil. It has around one hundred thousand employees. Its services are available for individuals as well as companies and businesses. Banco do Brasil provides retail banking, insurance, and private equity. Banco do Brasil operates more than 5000 branches and over 60000 service points including ATMs. It has over 65 million clients. In 2020, the total assets of Banco do Brasil are estimated to be over $360 billion.

3. Caixa Econômica Federal

Caixa Econômica Federal was founded in 1861. It is a public bank owned by the Brazilian government and it is based in the capital Brasilia. It is the largest fully government-owned entity in Latin America with over 87000 employees. Caixa Econômica Federal operates more than 4000 branches with over 60000 service points including ATMs. Caixa is the operator of Brazilian lotteries. In 2020, the total assets of Caixa are reported to be over $312 billion, and in 2019 Caixa announced that its net profit was $1.7 billion.

4. Banco Bradesco

Founded in 1843, Banco de Bradesco bought many financial institutions over the years such as Banco Morada, Banco do Estado do Maranhão, Banco do Estado do Ceará, and many other. Bradesco is managing American Express operations in Brazil since 2016. took over the American Express credit card operations in Brazil.

Bradesco provides a multitude of banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and organizations. It has over 108,000 employees and it operates over 5000 branches. Bradesco serves over 70 million customers. In 2020, the total assets of Bradesco are estimated to be over $276 billion.

5. Banco Santander

Banco Santander Brasil was established in 1985. It has over 50000 employees and it is based in Sao Paulo. It manages over 3,700 branches with more than 6 million clients. Banco Santander Brasil manages the Latin American operation of ABN Amro Bank since 2018. In 2020, the total assets of Banco Santander are estimated to be approximately $200 billion.

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