Ministers’ links to Master affair exhaust STF

• Terms: The contract of the wife of Alexandre de Moraes with the Master provided for the defense of interests before the BC, Revenue and Congress
• And yet: The millionaire value of the contract of the wife of Alexandre de Moraes with the tangled Banco Master

In addition to stopping the investigation, Toffoli also responded to a request from his traveling companion, criminal Augusto Arruda Botelho, that his client, Luis Antonio Bull, have access to all the evidence in the case that interests him. Really confidential, just for the public.

On another front, the contract maintained by the office of the wife of Minister Alexandre de Moraes, Viviane Barci de Moraes, was revealed with the Master since January 2024 — a period in which the bank was already facing a crisis of confidence in the market, was under the control of the Central Bank and was looking for a way out to resolve its liquidity problems.

• Analysis: Revelations about ministers plunge the Supreme Court into the Master’s crisis
• Also read: Toffoli’s decision stops the progress of investigations

The document was in digital form on the cell phone of Daniel Vorcaro, controller of Master, arrested with six other targets during the investigation operation into the fraud of 12.2 billion reais in the sale of credits to the public company BRB.

According to the contract, the office of the wife of Alexandre de Moraes would receive 3.6 million BRL per month over three years — which would result in a total remuneration of 129.6 million reais by the beginning of 2027, the year in which Moraes is expected to assume the presidency of the Supreme Court according to a system of rotation among ministers.

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With the liquidation of Master, payments were stopped. Everything indicates, however, that until then they were duly fulfilled, because in the messages with his team, Vorcaro made it clear that the disbursements for Viviane were a priority for the Master and could not fail to be carried out under any circumstances. If Vorcaro’s order was executed, Barci de Moraes would therefore receive 79 million reais. Two of the minister’s children, Alexandre and Giuliana, also work in the office.

The scope of services is wide. It provides for “the organization and coordination of five centers of joint and complementary action – strategic, consultative and contentious – before the Judicial Branch, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Judicial Police, the Executive Bodies (Central Bank, Federal Revenue, PGFN (Attorney General of the National Treasury, Cade and Legislative (monitoring of projects of interest to the contractor)).”

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BC, Federal Revenue, PGFN and Cade were asked about any request, question or petition from the office on behalf of the master. None of them responded.

From what we have discovered, Viviane did not participate in any meetings regarding BRB’s takeover of Master from Cade, who approved the deal before settlement. Barci de Moraes is also not included in the negotiation process within the body, where the Master’s defendant is Pinheiro Neto.

• Strategy: Vorcaro sought legal shortcut to return Master’s case to Nunes Marques

The only known document in which the office acts for Vorcaro and Master is a criminal complaint filed in April 2024 against investor Vladimir Timmerman, of Esh Capital, who has a long-standing dispute with businessman Nelson Tanure, controller of Gafisa.

In the process, Timmerman is accused of having slandered the banker, described as a “reputable 40-year-old businessman from Minas Gerais”, who according to Timmerman had “participated in and/or carried out fraudulent transactions between Gafisa and the Brazil Realty Fund” – of which, according to the investor, Master was a shareholder.

• Transparency: Toffoli decrees secrecy and transforms Vorcaro’s action into a black box
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The lawyers’ argument is that Timerman intended to “criminally harm the honor” of Vorcaro and the Master. They also claim he “publicly discredited” the bank “compromising the attributes that make it worthy of respect in civil society.”

Vorcaro was defeated in the first and second instances, but appeals are still pending.

The hiring of family office Moraes to represent Master came at a time when the bank was already facing market distrust and was under pressure from the BC to increase its guarantees. During this period, Master’s balance sheet already indicated that it would have liquidity problems.

• Battle: The Central Bank document that helped Vorcaro get out of prison
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Born from the acquisition of a bankrupt bank, Master experienced dizzying growth, driven by the sale of fixed income securities that yielded well above the market average – and earned banks and brokers who offered their clients commissions that were also higher than the norm. As an argument to reassure those wary of a deal that seems too good to be true, these sellers said there was nothing to worry about because “if it fails, FGC guarantees it.” The FGC is the credit guarantee fund, created after the 1995 banking crisis and supported by private banks, which guarantees investments of up to R$250,000.

When it was already clear that Master would not be able to honor its commitments, in March of this year BRB proposed the takeover of Master. This was a somewhat strange purchase, as the State Bank of Brasilia would pay around 2 billion reais for 58% of the bank’s capital, but would still retain control of Vorcaro.

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The thing is, that wasn’t the only complicated aspect of the operation. During the audit of commercial data, the BC discovered that Master had negotiated with the BRB the sale of 12.2 billion reais of non-existent credit portfolios (loan rights) to raise funds and had also defrauded the contracts supposed to prove the operation.

It was this movement that led to Operation Compliance Zero, launched by the federal police last month and which had Vorcaro among the targets. Simultaneously, the BC decrees the liquidation of Master. With this measure, Master’s operations were closed and its management was removed.

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The investigation into the scam then ended up at the STF following a decision by Toffoli. The minister, Moraes and company hope that the Attorney General of the Republic, Paulo Gonet, will maintain the process at the Supreme Court, guarantee secrecy and help hinder the progress of the case. This is not an unreasonable prediction, given that Moraes was one of the main sponsors of Gonet’s appointment to the position. With Gilmar Mendes, the two form an oiled trio.