State-owned bank Caixa gunning for superiority in agricultural credit segment

Brazil’s state-owned bank Caixa Econômica Federal has long garnered a reputation for being a social-facing institution. It handles payments for the country’s renowned wealth transfer program Bolsa Família, orchestrates popular housing programs, and manages the accounts of Brazil’s unemployment pecuniary fund FGTS. But Latin America’s largest government-owned financial institution is seeking to expand its horizons and become the bank of choice for Brazilian agricultural producers.

Caixa has offered rural credit since 2013, during which time it has lent BRL 44 billion (USD 8.66 billion) to more than 52,000 agricultural producers. But the bank’s government-appointed chairman, Pedro Guimarães, wants to increase Caixa’s rural credit portfolio from BRL 8 billion to BRL 40 billion by the end of next year and become the sector leader by 2026.

To do this, Caixa will need to take on Banco do Brasil, the oldest and second largest financial institution in the country. Well consolidated in the agribusiness sector, on Monday the...