BM&F Bovespa, the stock exchange of São Paulo, Brazil, has been the predominant Brazilian stock exchange since it acquired the Rio de Janeiro Stock Exchange in 2002. Trading on the exchange is carried out electronically. BM&F Bovespa has a strategic partnership with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and plays a leading role in the Federación Iberoamericana de Bolsas (FIAB), a transatlantic exchange association which encompasses major South American stock exchanges, the Spanish BME Group and Euronext Lisbon. Close to 500 companies are listed on the exchange.
The exchange facilitates trading in both exchange-traded and over-the-counter (OTF) contracts. Most contracts are traded on a T+3 settlement cycle. Products traded include stocks, options, forwards, swaps, futures, securities deposit certificates, government bonds, structured products, commodities, real estate credit notes and bills, and many specialized contracts. More than 80 brokers, including Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse, participate in the exchange.
BM&F Bovespa indexes include the IBOVESPA index which tracks overall market performance, the Brazil 100 Index (IBrX 100) which tracks 100 key stocks, and the Brazil 50 Index (IBrX 50) which tracks 50 key stocks.
The Brazil Broad-Based Index (IBrA) tracks the prices of stocks traded on the exchange.
Trading hours: Monday through Friday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. BRST (UTC-2/-3)
Settlement cycle: T+3
More on this topic:
Comprehensive comparison of Swiss online brokers
Key tips for successful trading
Common pitfalls of stock trading