Public savings banks and popular deposits in Brazil(1861-1940)

Abstract

The public savings banks were important in attracting deposits since its establishment in 1861 by the imperial government and later by the states. Although most of the inhabitants lived in the countryside, the main provinces and, later, state capitals maintained great proportion of savings account and deposits in relation to its population. Similarly, deposits of public savings banks represented significant portion of bank deposits, compared to the Bank of Brazil that was expanded dramatically in the early decades of the twentieth century. After a period of stagnation, the 1930s crisis and the reorganization of public savings banks allowed the renewed growth in deposits.