BNDES makes support for microcredit permanent.
With the change, the maximum financing amount per beneficiary increases from R$ 15 to R$ 20, while BNDES's participation in operations with financial agents will be reduced from 85% to 70%, rising to 90% in operations with agents that pass on the bank's resources.
Alana Gandra - Reporter for Agência Brasil
The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) has decided to permanently include support for microcredit in its operational policies. A statement to that effect was made today (1st) by the institution. This means that from now on, the program will no longer have a closing date or budget limit.
With the change, the maximum financing amount per beneficiary increases from R$ 15 to R$ 20, while BNDES's participation in operations with financial agents will be reduced from 85% to 70%, rising to 90% in operations with agents that pass on the bank's resources.
The BNDES press office reported that the credit granting process for the financial agent has been simplified, and that it will be exempt from compliance with regulations for operations up to R$ 20 million.
The requirement remains for intermediary agents, although with limitations. That is, an institution that has never operated with the bank can obtain a maximum of R$ 3 million in the first transaction. From the second transaction onwards, the maximum amount will be R$ 10 million. The maximum exposure limit for each intermediary agent is R$ 30 million.
The intermediary agent will have to make a deposit equivalent to 5% of the project value into a non-transferable escrow account, as an additional guarantee for BNDES in case of default.
BNDES's microcredit operations began in 1996, registering five cases of default in 18 years. Since 2005, the bank has disbursed R$ 520 million for microcredit in over 821 transactions. Last year, institutions supported by BNDES carried out 228 transactions, with loans totaling around R$ 717 million.