The best of two worlds: start-up mindset and profitability.
Banco BV made significant progress in several areas of its strategy. Its performance demonstrates its expertise and leadership in mature businesses, such as used light vehicle financing and wholesale, as well as in segments that contribute to the diversification of revenues and strengthen customer relationships, such as financing for solar energy and for small and medium companies. BV ended 2021 with record net income of R$1.6 billion and a 14% return on equity (ROE), compared with 10% in 2020.
Net income
R$ 1.6 bi
ROE
14.0%
A financial institution that compensates for the CO2 emissions from financed vehicles in Brazil.
In the area of mature businesses, BV’s 100% digital operations and quick automatic responses (under a minute) to 97% of its credit checks helped establish the bank as the market leader in used light vehicle financing for the ninth consecutive year. In insurance, BV maintained a prominent position as one of the largest brokers in the country, with more than R$1.1 billion in premiums.
In wholesale, the bank advanced its diversification strategy with increased risk distribution. The Corporate segment—companies with annual revenues between R$300.0 million and R$1.5 billion—grew by 13.9% compared with 2020 and now represents 47% of the wholesale portfolio. In addition, debt issuance operations coordinated by BV totaled a record R$25.5 billion.
As part of the new expansion strategies, solar panel financing—a business in line with the sustainability commitments of BV—grew by 181.6%. Banco Digital reached 2 million customers, 53% of the bank’s total customer base, through a successful launch strategy for the BV Account. The launch of a new card portfolio also contributed to the growth of this business line.
Another highlight in the year was the expansion of the bank’s portfolio in the small and medium company segment, strengthened by investments in fintechs such as Trademaster. BV also signed an important strategic partnership with S3 Bank, a banking-as-a-service (BaaS) platform that offers integrated financing and payment solutions in a modular, secure, and scalable manner.
BVx, the innovation business unit, was created with the mission of generating value through connections with the start-up ecosystem, with a focus on co-creation, development, and investment in strategic partnerships on three fronts: Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) and strategic partnerships, BV Open, and BV Lab. On the first front, BVx maintains partnerships with approximately 30 innovative companies to enrich the ecosystem. In 2021, the bank expanded its participation in Portal Solar, establishing itself as one of the main financiers of solar panels in Brazil.
BV Open plays an important role in BV’s revenue diversification strategy by working as a distribution channel. At the end of 2021, 57 partners from several segments, such as education, energy, health, and e-commerce, were connected and using the services of the platform. As it continued to connect with the innovation ecosystem, BV formed a partnership, through BV Lab, with SignumWeb, a start-up that facilitates communication with people with hearing impairment through certified sign language interpreters.
BV reinforced its commitment to the ESG agenda through the public document “2030 Commitments for a Lighter Future,” which detailed three objectives: (i) neutralize environmental impact; (ii) accelerate social inclusion; and (iii) mobilize resources to promote sustainable business. BV’s long-term targets are based on these objectives, which align with five of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
BV announced the offsetting of CO2 emissions of its entire financed fleet—by 2021, more than 750,000 financed vehicles had joined the offset program. BV financed and distributed a total of R$6.2 billion to fund sustainable initiatives in retail and wholesale.
In the social arena, BV developed the project Junto ao Meu Financiamento Solar (Together with my Solar Financing), in partnership with the nongovernmental organization Gerando Falcões, to supply solar energy to more than 240 homes in a community in São José do Rio Preto in the interior of the state of São Paulo. This will be the first favela in Latin America to have solar panels. In addition, as part of its culture, BV is committed to diversity and inclusion. The company sponsors programs such as Lugar de Mãe é no BV (Mothers Have a Place at BV), which focuses on hiring new mothers who are out of the job market.
BV also believes that sports are an avenue for social inclusion. Last year, the company sponsored, for the first time, the biggest skate event in Latin America: Skate Total Urbe. It also supported 10 athlete and former athlete institutes that reached more than 1,500 children and young people through 2,000 in-person or virtual classes in 2021.
BV also made progress in its engagement with stakeholders: it increased its level of transparency by publicizing its strategies, plans, and results to the market and took an important step in governance by forming a Sustainability Committee and including incentives to align the entire team with ESG principles. BV stands out for being the first bank to establish a framework of ESG targets linked to the variable compensation of its senior management.
