Central Bank of Brazil Headquarters

The headquarters of the Central Bank of Brazil stands in the Setor Bancário Sul, the banking district of Brasília. It was designed by Hélio Ferreira Pinto and finished in 1981, after construction that began in 1975, and it is about 101 metres tall. A ribbed spine of raw concrete runs through the middle, with blocks of bronze-coloured glass stacked on both sides.

The upper blocks stick out over a recessed gap, which gives the building a strong, bold shape. Inside works the bank that sets Brazil's money policy. The Central Bank of Brazil was founded on 31 December 1964 and is the country's main monetary authority.

What the bank does

The Central Bank of Brazil is responsible for keeping the money in Brazilians' pockets stable in what it can buy. It was created by merging three institutions: SUMOC, the Bank of Brazil and the National Treasury. A key tool is the SELIC rate, the bank's benchmark overnight interest rate, set by its Monetary Policy Committee, called Copom. The bank also works to bring more people into the financial system.

Becoming independent

For years the bank was run under the executive branch. In 2020 the Senate passed a bill to make it independent, by 56 votes to 12. In February 2021 the Chamber of Deputies approved it by 339 to 114, and Complementary Law No. 179 was signed on 24 February 2021. Since 25 February 2021 the bank has been independent from the federal government and has a new organisation.

The building

The card for this model describes the headquarters as a concrete spine with bronze-glass blocks, the upper ones cantilevered out. The tower stands in the Setor Bancário Sul, the banking sector of Brasília. Few written sources describe this building itself, so this article keeps to the facts that are documented.

On the globe

The model shows the concrete spine with bronze-glass blocks stacked on both sides. Look at how the upper blocks jut out.