Mediservice, which specialises in corporate health insurance, brings on board its 320,000 clients and consolidates Bradesco’s position in the competitive Brazilian healthcare space. Agora, Brazil’s largest internet brokerage firm with 29,000 active clients, is a crucial step to Bradesco building its presence in the brokerage sector.
In the past 15 months, Bradesco’s determined growth plans have included an investment of more than $1bn in IT and telecoms upgrades. In its branch network – encompassing 3000 units – 95,000 hardware programmes and other peripherals were replaced.
This investment continues to pay off: net profits for 2007 were up by 36.8% and assets grew by 55.1%. Return on equity was a very healthy 23.8% and the cost-to-income ratio was 41.8% for the year. This has translated to healthy dividends, with the board of directors approving in March a 17.6% increase in the monthly remuneration of its shareholders.
“This is an encouraging recognition of our constant efforts to focus on efficient, innovative, prudent and ethical work as the best means of providing our shareholders, investors and clients with consistent returns,” says CEO Márcio Cypriano.
“We will continue to pursue new business niches and take advantage of all the opportunities which arise on the Brazilian and international markets. All these initiatives will be undertaken in line with the sustainable practices which Bradesco has adopted and which have made it one of the best companies in the world in this sector.”
