Going from strength to strength over the past years, Brazilian banking giants Itaú Unibanco, Banco do Brasil, Bradesco and Caixa Economica Federal continue to dominate Latin America’s banking landscape. The Brazilian lenders occupy the top four positions in The Banker’s ranking of Latin American players, with $38.18bn, $32.33bn, $31.31bn and $11.45bn of Tier 1 capital, respectively.
While Brazil's dominance at the top of the table remains unchallenged, the most noticeable change in the regional ranking comes from Colombia's banks. Much improved Tier 1 capital levels have pushed Banco de Bogotá to fifth position, from 10th in 2011, while Bancolombia gained one place and now occupies sixth position. Another of the country's banks, Banco Davivienda, also climbed up the list and ranks 14th, a four-place jump from its previous 18th position. The lender may continue its upward trend in next year’s ranking thanks to its acquisition of HSBC’s assets in Costa Rica, El Salvador and Honduras earlier in 2012.
