BRASILIA, May 14 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Brazil was given the green light to operate as an underwriter in debt and equity operations in the U.S. capital market, the institution said Friday.

"This measure has immediate effect and represents another step for the Bank of Brazil to strengthen its business in the United States,particularly in supporting the internationalization of Brazilian companies," said the bank in a statement.

The authorization from the U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority came after the U.S. Federal Reserve last month allowed the bank to develop banking activities in the U.S. territory under the same conditions attached to local banks.

By now, the bank has only two branches operating in the United States, one in New York and the other in Miami.

The Bank of Brazil reaffirmed on Wednesday its intention to buy agencies in the United States to increase the number of individual account holders.

Currently there are about 500 institutions for sale in the United States, which opens up opportunities to increase the customer base, said the bank. Acquisitions can help the bank speed up its overseas expansion, offering services to the estimated 1.4 million Brazilian people living overseas.

The Bank of Brazil is a major Brazilian financial institution, which posted a net income of 2.4 billion reais (1.34 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter of 2010, 41 percent higher compared with the same period last year.