Brazil needs to make reforms to move forward, says Roberto Setubal

Co-chairman of Itaú’s board of directors, Roberto Setubal defended this Tuesday (23) the implementation of structural reforms that increase the country’s productivity in the name of sustainable economic growth in the coming years.

“Brazil is a country of extraordinary opportunities. And these opportunities will only be realized for the good of the population, with economic growth, if we know how to make some super-important reforms”, said Setubal, during an event promoted by asset manager Kinea Investimentos, subsidiary by Itaú.

The executive said that it is necessary for Brazil to become more competitive with global peers, with greater economic opening in the region, a reduction in the tax burden, progress in privatization processes and more freedom for the private sector to act.

“Wealth is created by productivity,” said Setubal, adding that some measures in this direction were taken in recent years, with the approval of the pension reform, the independence of the BC (Central Bank), and the privatizations of Petrobras Distribuidora and Eletrobras. .

“The agenda is moving forward, but it needs to move faster and continue in this direction”, said the co-chairman of Itaú’s board of directors.

He also stated, however, that he does not see candidates in the electoral debate approaching in more depth the issue of productivity gains through the advancement of reforms.

“I don’t see candidates talking much about economic growth, productivity, reforms. Nobody is talking about that.”

Politicians generally assume their mandates already aiming for reelection or trying to elect their successor, which contributes to the fact that reforms are not a priority issue on the agenda, said the executive.

“Labor or tax reform will not give results in one, two years.”

Economic uncertainty contributes to high interest rates in the banking sector, says Setubal

He also stated that the high interest rates charged by banks in the country are largely due to economic volatility and the difficulties of people and companies in being able to plan for the long term.

This uncertainty about the economic scenario ahead “creates a very high risk for those who lend, and the question of the spread [diferença entre o custo do dinheiro obtido pelo banco em relação aos juros cobrados dos clientes]which has to be high to support a big loss”, pointed out Setubal.

At the beginning of the month, Itaú Unibanco reported a net income of R$ 7.679 billion in the second quarter of 2022, which corresponds to a growth of 17.3% compared to the same period last year.

The financial margin with customers (difference between the cost of money raised by the bank in relation to that charged from customers) grew 30.9% in the annual comparison, to R$ 21.98 billion.