Bank failure is not just an accounting event. As with the event, it can also represent a shake-up in public confidence, a threat to financial stability and, often, a reflection of profound management failures.
Over the last few decades, Brazil has accumulated a series of emblematic episodes of banking collapse, which shaped the actions of the Central Bank and motivated the creation of the Credit Guarantee Fund (FGC).
The most famous
The collapse of National Bank It is the most memorable episode in recent history. Founded in the 1940s, the institution became one of the largest private banks in the country, sponsored the pilot Ayrton Senna and was present in Brazilian football.
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However, the National Bank collapsed in 1995 after the discovery of 652 fictitious accounts and a loss estimated at R$8 billion – revealing the depth of accounting fraud that can occur in large institutions.
The economic and symbolic impact was so great that it forever changed banking regulation in Brazil. In addition to accelerating the creation of Proer (Program to Stimulate the Restructuring and Strengthening of the Financial SystemNational), a bank rescue program that brought together economic measures to help them, mainly in relation to liquidity, that is, with the transfer of resources from the Union to private institutions. The case was also decisive in strengthening the FGC, created in 1995 to protect account holders and retail investors in the event of bank failure.
Other emblematic cases
See below the most emblematic cases of bank failures in the country’s most recent history:
Banco Econômico (1995): The biggest hole in history
In addition to Banco Nacional, another financial institution went bankrupt in 1995, Banco Econômico, the oldest private bank in the country, founded in 1834. The Bahian institution faced a deep crisis after the Plano Real, culminating in an intervention by the BC in 1995.
Investigations revealed that the assets were fictitious, and the loss reached R$15.8 billion. The rescue attempt by groups such as Odebrecht and Ultra failed, and the bank was liquidated.
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Bamerindus (1997): From peak to liquidation
With roots in Paraná and a trajectory of continental expansion, Bamerindus was one of the largest banks in South America in the 1970s and 1980s. The post-Plano Real economic stabilization, however, exposed weaknesses in management.
In 1997, the Central Bank intervened, and part of the assets were incorporated by HSBC. The estimated loss exceeded R$5 billion and the FGC had to disburse more than R$3.7 billion to guarantee deposits to shareholders at the time – a value close to R$20 billion today.
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Banco Santos (2005): accounting makeup and federal intervention
Controlled by the now deceased businessman, Banco Santos was the target of intervention by the Central Bank in November 2004, after the finding of negative net worth of around R$700 million, balance sheet makeup and non-compliance with prudential rules. Its bankruptcy was declared in early 2005.
Cruzeiro do Sul (2012): Fraud and extrajudicial settlement
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Banco Cruzeiro do Sul was liquidated after the discovery of accounting manipulations and non-compliance with regulatory standards. The loss was estimated at more than R$2.2 billion.
Banco BVA (2013): promises of profitability and loss of R$1.2 billion
Focused on corporate credit and resource management, following accounting irregularities and poor risk management. The FGC paid around R$1.2 billion to 5 thousand investors, mainly in CDBs and LCIs. The case generated legal disputes over the value of the guarantee, as the ceiling was raised to R$250,000 shortly after the intervention.
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PortoCred and BRK Financeira (2023–2025): The contemporary warning
More recently, the bankruptcy of Portocred and BRK Financeira reignited the debate about the solidity of smaller institutions. Both operated with high-yield CDBs, guaranteed by the FGC, but faced extrajudicial liquidation.
Portocred, based in Rio Grande do Sul, was liquidated in February 2023. The FGC started payments through its application, with 12 thousand creditors and amounts totaling R$521 million. BRK Financeira, liquidated in July 2025, also mobilized thousands of fund activations, reinforcing the importance of regulation on risk products and transparency in the offer of investments.
