Federal Police investigate Banco Master over suspected fraud with court-ordered settlement transfers
The PF has been investigating suspicious transactions involving court-ordered settlement transfers and credit rights linked to Banco Master, headed by Daniel Vorcaro, since June of last year.
Banco Master under federal investigation over suspected fraud in multi-million-real transactions
The Federal Police opened an inquiry to investigate Banco Master following complaints filed by asset manager Esh Capital. As reported by estadao.com.br, the investigations have been ongoing since June of last year in the 8th Federal Criminal Court of São Paulo and involve suspicions of fraudulent transactions with court-ordered settlement transfers and credit rights.
The case, running to nearly 900 pages, describes in detail the alleged crimes committed by the institution headed by Daniel Vorcaro. Esh Capital is known in the financial market for an "activist" stance — jargon used to describe investors who bet on companies in financial difficulty to force management changes and boost their share valuations.
Dispute between managers feeds the complaints
The accusations gained traction from a dispute between Esh Capital and businessman Nelson Tanure over construction firm Gafisa. The asset manager raised a series of allegations, ranging from the alleged control exercised by Tanure over Gafisa and his involvement in Banco Master, to market manipulation through investment funds.
Vladimir Timerman, owner of Esh, and Tanure are declared rivals and are locked in disputes on multiple fronts. Recently, Timerman was sentenced by the courts for harassment of Tanure on social media. The manager argues, however, that he sought the legal means available to report conduct he considered irregular. Timerman claims to be legally barred from commenting on Tanure and Gafisa. Tanure did not respond to requests for comment.
Banco Master, for its part, states that all of its operations "were and are constantly submitted to verification through internal and external audits, in an independent manner, certifying the robustness, seriousness and transparency of information to supervisory bodies".
Amazonita Fund: purchase and resale of court-ordered settlement transfers on the same day
One of the episodes that stands out in the inquiry involves the investment fund Amazonita FDIC NP, administered by Trustee Distribuidora de Títulos e Valores Mobiliários (DTVM), owned by Maurício Quadrado. Quadrado became a partner at Banco Master in 2021 and left the partnership in 2024. Neither Trustee nor Quadrado responded to requests for comment.
According to Esh Capital, on 31 July 2020 Amazonita disbursed R$ 136.5 million to acquire court-ordered settlement transfers. On the same day, it sold more than half of the securities to Master. Five days later, it transferred the remainder to the bank. What makes the operations suspect are the prices charged: the manager points out that Master paid R$ 320 million for securities that Amazonita had acquired less than a week before for less than half that value — a markup of 125 per cent.
The PF summoned the bank to explain the transaction. In response, Master denies paying R$ 320 million for the securities and frames the transaction as an "exchange of credit rights". According to the institution's version, it transferred to Amazonita a percentage of credit rights it held and received in return securities of equivalent value. The only actual disbursement would have been R$ 10 million — an additional payment to the fund, because Amazonita had ended up with higher-risk securities. The investigations continue.
Billion-real CDBs and hard-to-value assets
Banco Master is known in the market for its aggressive strategy of issuing Bank Certificates of Deposit (CDBs) to finance its operations. Today, the institution holds R$ 58.5 billion in CDBs and Bank Deposit Receipts (RDBs). The amount corresponds to nearly half of the assets of the Credit Guarantee Fund (FGC), the entity responsible for guaranteeing investor deposits, which generates concern in the financial market.
Using resources raised through CDBs, the bank invested in risky assets, such as court-ordered settlement transfers. These securities depend on a court decision to be paid off, which makes both the value and the timeframe for receipt uncertain.
Estadão has found that the institution holds at least R$ 16 billion in court-ordered settlement transfers and credit rights — double the figure shown in official financial statements. Much of these assets is allocated to credit rights funds whose value is difficult to measure, forming a kind of "black box".
The complexity even challenged KPMG itself, one of the four largest global audit firms. In Master's latest financial statements, relating to December of last year, the firm stated: "We consider the measurement and evaluation of the ownership of credit rights and court-ordered settlement transfers as a principal matter for our audit, due to the relevance of the amounts and the judgements involved regarding the formal and procedural aspects linked to the ownership of credit rights and court-ordered settlement transfers, as well as for the measurement of the asset, in addition to the uncertainties of their future realisation."
BRB signals interest in stake in the bank
In March this year, Banco de Brasília (BRB) surprised the market by expressing an intention to acquire 58 per cent of Banco Master's total capital. The Federal District Court, however, did not authorise the completion of the purchase. The case remains open as Federal Police investigations advance.
Source: Google News PT — Crime (pt)