Tarciana Paula Gomes Medeiros

The daughter of a fruit and vegetable stand owner, Tarciana Gomes Medeiros started her career as an office clerk at Banco do Brasil, the largest agricultural lender in the country. In January 2023, she was appointed to the top job by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Gomes Medeiros’s first year running the bank produced strong financial results. In 2023, revenue increased by 10.8% to $63 billion. In the first half of 2024, the bank reported a 7.2% year-on-year increase in net income. She has also confronted controversy. Last year, Gomes Medeiros apologized for the bank’s historical involvement in the slave trade. Additionally, she has announced initiatives to address structural racial inequality in the bank’s ranks. Unsurprisingly, given that the bank is the main lender to Brazil’s agribusiness sector, Gomes Medeiros’s strategy centers around sustainability. Sustainable initiatives currently make up 35% of the bank’s credit portfolio.