Banco do Nordeste (BN), a development and commercial bank founded in 1954, began by financing agricultural projects and entrepreneurs with funds from federally subsidized credit programs and is the main credit provider for large and small farmers. 

BN offers a series of diverse banking services that range from financing for large agribusinesses to serving low-income microentrepreneurs through its microfinance program. The bank is known for serving as one of the main channels of disbursement for the Programa Nacional de Agricultura Familiar (PRONAF)—the federally subsidized credit program aimed at developing small and micro agribusiness. BN's microfinance program, known as CrediAmigo, is one of the largest microcredit operations in Latin America in terms of clients.