Regional Financial Institutions and the Role of the BNDES in Latin America

The BNDES serves as a national development bank that provides significant post-shipment credit to Latin America, primarily for infrastructure and capital goods. While the Brazilian government has promoted South-South integration, BNDES disbursements largely follow the dynamics of Brazilian trade and market demand. The bank faces criticism regarding the environmental and social sustainability of its projects and the high concentration of funding among a few large firms.

• The BNDES primarily functions as a national development bank focused on Brazil's social and economic development, but it uses its post-shipment credit lines to finance foreign firms or financial institutions purchasing Brazilian goods and services.
• Latin America has become the dominant destination for BNDES export financing; in 2013, the region received 57% of loans, a significant increase from 34% in 2009.
• Venezuela and Cuba have seen dramatic increases in BNDES disbursements. Between 2009 and 2013, disbursements to Venezuela grew by over 1,000%, while those to Cuba expanded by 269%.
• BNDES financing in Latin America is heavily concentrated in infrastructure and capital goods. Between 2009 and 2013, disbursements to the infrastructure sector in Latin America totaled $4.09 billion, reflecting an 82.5% growth rate.
• Evidence suggests BNDES operations are driven more by market demand and the performance of Brazilian exports than by the Brazilian government's strategic goals for regional integration.
• The bank faces domestic and international criticism, including the high concentration of funds—where two firms, Odebrecht and Embraer, received 81% of total disbursements over five years—and concerns over the environmental and social impacts of financed projects.

APA

Sampaio, A. V. (2015). Regional Financial Institutions and the Role of the BNDES in Latin America. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/BRICS-Insights-5.pdf

Chicago

Sampaio, Adriano Vilela. Regional Financial Institutions and the Role of the BNDES in Latin America. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2015. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/BRICS-Insights-5.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sampaio |first1=Adriano Vilela |title=Regional Financial Institutions and the Role of the BNDES in Latin America |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=2015 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/BRICS-Insights-5.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sampaio2015regional, author = {Sampaio, Adriano Vilela}, title = {{Regional Financial Institutions and the Role of the BNDES in Latin America}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2015}, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/BRICS-Insights-5.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }