The president of the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES), Aloizio Mercadante, said on Tuesday (13) that the transfer of resources to the National Treasury will reach a value higher than the accounting profit recorded in the fiscal year of last year. He also said that it will be a record amount.
In 2023, the financial institution recorded a total net result of R$21.9 billion. BNDES had already approved the transfer to the National Treasury of R$15 billion in dividends for the last year.
According to the bank’s estimates, the amount will be higher than the amount approved, and could reach R$24.5 billion. This amount includes the payment of dividends, the collection of taxes and the advance payment of installments provided for in an agreement signed with the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU), in which a schedule was established to settle a debt related to contributions made by the Union between 2008 and 2014.
“We will pay an unprecedented volume of dividends and will transfer to the National Treasury an amount that is more than 100% of last year’s profit, to contribute to the primary surplus target,” said Mercadante. According to him, this is a support for the effort that has been undertaken by the Ministry of Finance to ensure the balance of public accounts. Mercadante also said that the transfers are made safely, within the institution’s possibilities.
“Everyone will have to make their contribution, and this is the contribution of BNDES. We inherited a situation that was greatly deteriorated by the irresponsibility of the previous government, which practiced fiscal populism during the 2022 elections. And BNDES was being dismantled as an institution. Now we are making a huge effort to start generating credit, jobs and investments again. And we are seeing the national industry growing again,” he added.
Profit
The statements were made during the presentation of the financial statement for the second quarter of 2024. BNDES recorded an accounting profit of R$8.1 billion.
“Of the large banks that have already announced their quarterly results, our result is the third best in Brazil. It is behind only Itaú and Banco do Brasil, which are commercial banks with 90,000 employees. We have 2,450. And a development bank does not need to have profits at this level. But this effort was important for the transfer of resources to the treasury this year,” Mercadante reiterated.
In his assessment, economic growth will cause fiscal demand and interest rates to fall. Therefore, BNDES would not need to make efforts in the future to achieve results at this level.
LCD and FAT
During the presentation of the balance sheet, Mercadante also assessed the importance of diversifying the bank’s operations. He mentioned the creation of the Development Credit Letter (LCD), a new title fixed income proposed by BNDES and approved by the National Congress. The initiative will generate resources for granting credit to national industry.
The LCD may be issued by BNDES and regional development banks. It will operate in a similar way to the Real Estate Credit Letter (LCI) and the Agribusiness Credit Letter (LCA), which are issued by the private sector to finance activities in these sectors. The income is exempt from Income Tax for individuals.
“LCD will give us around R$10 billion in new credit. And we will raise funds on the market, this will not put pressure on the Treasury,” said the president of BNDES.
Mercadante also highlighted the importance of the Climate Fund, designed to support projects related to the decarbonization of the economy, and raised the need for a solution for the Workers’ Support Fund (FAT), established by the 1988 Federal Constitution to fund unemployment insurance programs, salary bonuses and economic development and job creation projects through the BNDES.
“We have a problem ahead of us that needs to be addressed. The FAT has been misused from its constitutional function and is financing the Social Security system with a growing deficit. We will need to create a solid and sustainable way to finance the Social Security system, not a makeshift solution, which is what has been done,” said Mercadante, warning that if nothing is done, the FAT will start to generate impacts from 2026 onwards.
