Beny Podlubny, head of XP Private, talks to Euromoney about the metaverse, risk appetite, international expansion and why Brazilian clients like to keep things close to home.

Calling time on the virtual meeting room

It took all of six days of the new year before the tone was set: XP Inc’s announcement of its acquisition of Banco Modal. The deal will need regulatory approval, but is being warmly endorsed by the target’s management and its minority shareholder, Credit Suisse.

German lender renews focus on LatAm after 2015 withdrawal.

The momentum behind the loss-making bank’s IPO had become unstoppable by year-end, even as the range was eventually cut. It now faces intense scrutiny as a public firm.

The CEO and CFO aren’t about to abandon the physical in the chase for digital business.

The recent appearance of a golden bull outside the São Paulo's B3 stock exchange was something of a red rag to the city’s populace.

Banco Pan’s turnaround has taken another step forward with its acquisition of ecommerce platform Mosaico. Chief executive Carlos Eduardo Guimarães talks to Euromoney about the importance of growth with profitability.

Ricardo Lacerda launched a boutique investment bank in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Having finally succeeded in IPOing his firm at the third attempt, he now looks to navigate it through Brazil’s turbulent waters.

The world has been pressuring Brazil about the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest within its borders for decades. New ESG-style initiatives are being adopted by Brazilian banks and businesses, but it could be the climate impact closer to home that’s creating the impetus for real change.

Gustavo Montezano has been president of BNDES since July 2019. He is on a mission to get Brazil’s state development bank to adapt to the new financial reality of ESG. How the resultant tensions play out will be crucial to the development of Brazil and the world.

Brazil’s central bank attempts to redress the country’s woeful environmental reputation with climate-related stress tests.

Bank CEOs do not like it, but the regulators are fostering competition.

Private sector investment led to a Q1 GDP surge, with drought and energy shortages the main threat to economic revival.

Payments company prices above range as it shrugs off regional valuation constraints on Nasdaq debut.

Founder and former chief executive Guilherme Benchimol was keen to stress the mould-breaking attributes of his chosen successor as he passed the reins of XP Inc to Thiago Maffra in May.

The Swiss bank’s move onshore comes as other foreign players are leaving.

In recent years, Brazil has endured famine, flood and pestilence. What’s next?

Pitching Petrobras will now demand military precision.

The cost advantages for some fintechs will become compromised as they begin to build physical operations. Euromoney speaks to Sergio Furio, CEO of Brazilian secured lender Creditas, about moving into the real world.

State-owned Caixa Economica cashes out of its Pan investment with R$2 billion profit.

Bankers sign up to open letter decrying the government’s handling of the crisis.

Liquidity events rather than asset migration drive market share gains.

The country’s president has responded to falling approval ratings and the threat of a trucker strike by raising bank taxes.

The country’s banks have become accustomed to the disruption caused by the new challengers, but XP Bank could take this to a whole new level.

Milton Maluhy officially became Itaú’s new CEO at the beginning of February. He now faces the challenge of cutting the bank down to size.

The bank's management is confident that pandemic losses will be contained.

Emerging markets have regained some of the buoyancy lost during the early months of the coronavirus crisis, but analyst opinions hint at the difficulty of identifying which EM currencies investors should favour.

Brazil should be well placed to benefit from renewed interest in forestry projects, but the country’s restrictive land laws could lead foreign investment to flow elsewhere.

Brazil's Nubank is the world’s most valuable fintech in the digital banking space – now worth over $25 billion. In his first interview this year, chief executive and co-founder David Velez explains why he’s in no rush to IPO and why he would rather focus on the huge opportunity left in Brazil and elsewhere in the region.