The banks in Brazil were making 30% return on equity every single year for decades. They were the most profitable banks in the world. And the reason for that was they had an oligopoly — five banks controlling 80% of all deposits in the country, and there was just no competition.
The banks were making so much money that they had no incentive to improve. And the government was protecting them because they were too important to fail, too important for the financial system. So you had this oligopoly that was just extracting enormous amounts of money from consumers and small businesses.
3d ago
Underscored — save the words that stop you in your tracks.
