Alfredo Egydio Arruda Botelho and Mário Wallace Simonsen

The founding merchants of Banco Itaú and Unibanco recognized in 1924 that the future of the Brazilian economy lay not merely in the extraction of raw materials, but in the sophisticated financing of industrial infrastructure and commercial trade, leading them to establish the institutions with the explicit mission of funding the rapid industrialization of the nation. Their founding philosophy was deeply rooted in the belief that financial intermediation was not merely a commercial service, but a critical piece of public infrastructure that required long-term strategic planning, technical excellence, and a willingness to invest in massive, capital-intensive trade finance operations.

The founding merchants of Banco Itaú and Unibanco established the institutions in 1924, creating regional financial entities that would evolve into the undisputed apex of the Latin American financial sector. They approached the problem of economic development with a deep understanding of international trade and commercial strategy, recognizing that the industrial revolution would define the 20th century, and that a nation without its own sophisticated banking system was a nation without a future. Their early success was driven by their ability to navigate the complex political and logistical landscape of the Brazilian states, leveraging the technical expertise of their workforce to secure access to the vast trade routes of the Atlantic and the rapidly growing industrial centers of São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. The founders instilled a culture of long-term strategic planning, technical excellence, and operational discipline in the banks, creating a corporate DNA that remains visible in the bank’s willingness to invest in massive, long-lead-time infrastructure projects and its deep integration across the global financial value chain. Their visionary leadership and unwavering focus on economic development laid the foundation for a century of growth and adaptation, transforming regional lenders into a global financial powerhouse.