Venezolano de Crédito is a Venezuelan general bank based in Caracas, Venezuela. Founded in 1925, it has grown to be one of Venezuela's largest banks. Services provided include deposits, checking and savings accounts, letters of credit, foreign currency transactions, electronic collections, commercial and personal loans, custody of securities, travelers checks and investment banking. The institution played a crucial role in the economic development of the country throughout the twentieth century, funding and developing key sectors of the economy, such as agriculture, livestock and basic services, including urban development. In 2001 the administration decided to form a universal bank by merging with Soficrédito and Sogecrédito. Since 2003 it has begun a process of rapid expansion, and was characterized by specializing in offering services to digital solutions and technology industries. The bank is ranked seventh in size by the SUDEBAN, falling in the medium tier. In 2007 the bank had 103 agencies and offices across the country as well as a branch in the Cayman Islands and an office in Miami.
History
It was founded on 4 June 1925 by :es:Henrique Pérez Dupuy|Henrique Pérez Dupuy as Venezuelan Bank of Credit and authorized along with five other banks to issue currency on behalf of Venezuela in the absence of a central bank, making payments of roughly 15.43 million bolivars. During the government of General Eleazar López Contreras, it financed much of the modernization projects of Caracas. In 1940 with the establishment of the Central Bank of Venezuela, banks were required to transfer gold reserves to support the printing of notes, which the bank refused to do. The refusal resulted in it being sued by the state through the Central Bank of Venezuela. However, in 1946 the bank made its first delivery of gold, valued at 10,000,000 bolivars, in exchange for the same amount of silver, but the conflict ended in 1956 when all notes issued by the bank were destroyed. In the 1980s the bank was a pioneer, along with one other bank, in offering the first interconnected ATMs through the technologically advanced Suiche 7B network in Venezuela. Then in 1996, it was the first Venezuelan bank to enter the New York Stock Exchange and two years later opened an office in the Cayman Islands. In mid-2002 it changed its name to the current Venezolano de Crédito.
