Brasília – Interest from foreign investors in the Brazilian banking system has remained stable over the last few years and was little affected by the turbulence caused by the recent financial crisis, according to the Financial Stability Report for the first half of 2010, issued this Thursday (23rd) by the Brazilian Central Bank.
According to the report, from 2006 to 2010, out of a total of 22 approvals for the establishing of new banking institutions, including investment banks, eight concerned new foreign-controlled banks.
The main source of capital was Europe, with a total of five institutions. Two of the new banks have Asian capital, being one Chinese and one Japanese, and another has a Mexican-owned share. "Such figures not only attest to the importance of the Brazilian banking system, but they also point to different effects of the crisis among the world’s leading financial institutions and to the growing interest from Asian institutions," informs the Central Bank.
According to the report, the Central Bank is currently considering five requests for the establishment of banks with foreign participation. Three are United States-based and two are European. "There is also a similar number of recent hearings with a perspective of being formalized shortly."
"The entry of foreign banks into Brazil and Brazilian investment in banks abroad highlight the need for integrated monitoring efforts among organizations in different countries, so as to prevent and/or mitigate systemic risk on an international scale," according to the report.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
