Having revelled in the economic growth that characterised the past few years, Brazil's banks are now struggling to adapt to a less favourable environment. In response to stalling gross domestic product and disposable income growth, many lenders are curbing their lending, leaving gaps, particularly in the small and medium-sized enterprise segment, for other players to step in.

Brazil's private banking business had a wake-up call in 2013 when a stalling economy triggered a slowdown in its growth, increasing competition and forcing banks to look beyond their existing customer base. Now, armed with new strategies and a wider range of products, can Brazil's private banks finally exploit the full potential of this vast and wealthy market?

The tapering of the US Federal reserve's quantitative easing programme and a higher interest rates environment are mopping up liquidity from emerging markets, separating the top-in-class from the current-account-bingers. How does Latin America fare?

As Brazil’s economy continues to disappoint, investors are turning their attentions to other Latin American economies. But Brazil’s investment potential should not be underestimated.

Brasil Plural is a relative newcomer to the financial markets, but has already played an important part in the world’s biggest initial public offering of 2013, to date. However, as Brazil's economy slows, will the bank's diverse approach help it to maintain its early momentum?

Once dominated by global firms, Brazil’s investment banking space is being reclaimed by local players, putting the squeeze on returns. But, despite increased competition and lower returns, is Brazil’s economy just too big to be ignored?