By Luciana Magalhaes and Marcela Ayres
SAO PAULO/BRASILIA, April 14 (Reuters) - Brazilian independent asset manager Quadra Capital is nearing the acquisition of 15 billion reais ($2.99 billion) of assets from state-owned Banco de Brasília (BRB) that were previously held by liquidated lender Banco Master, said three people familiar with the talks.
The deal requires a nod, or at least no objection, from the central bank, the people added on condition of anonymity because the information is not public.
Although formal approval is not needed, according to two other sources, the monetary authority needs to understand the transaction's framework, one of them said.
Quadra and BRB declined to comment. The central bank did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
The financial regulator has been engaged with BRB over the lender's need to bolster its capital following a balance sheet issue tied to the acquisition of assets from Master, which included fraudulent credit portfolios.
Last November, Brazil's central bank liquidated Master, a mid-sized lender that had grown aggressively through a strategy based on high-yield debt sold via investment platforms.
The bank's former controller, Daniel Vorcaro, is currently in prison amid a police investigation into fraud. Upon his arrest last month, Vorcaro's defense team released a statement saying he denied the allegations leveled against him.
EQUITY STAKES AND CREDIT CLAIMS
The assets under negotiation between Quadra and BRB consist essentially of equity stakes in companies or credit claims against businesses and individuals that once belonged to Master, but had no connection to the bank or its controllers, according to one of the sources.
Quadra specializes in managing low-liquidity assets.
The firm and BRB have been in talks for about 60 to 90 days and are poised to conclude within weeks, pending a non-objection from the central bank, said the people familiar with the deal.
Last week, the governor of the Federal District, Celina Leão, told reporters in Brasilia that BRB was in talks with an unspecified investment firm to sell up to 15 billion reais in assets acquired from Master.
Under the proposed structure, the transaction would involve an initial payment of 4 billion reais, with the remainder held in fund quotas, she added.
The people confirmed that the majority of the deal was to be paid in quotas of a new fund to be created specifically to manage the former Banco Master assets, but did not specify the exact breakdown.
Prior to the liquidation, BRB acquired assets from Master and was also in negotiations to gain control of the lender, but the central bank rejected the transaction.
BRB has missed the statutory deadline to publish its 2025 financial statements, citing the need to complete a forensic audit related to the acquisition's impacts. The lender has scheduled a shareholder meeting for April 22 to vote on measures to shore up its capital base.
(Reporting by Luciana Magalhaes; Editing by Jamie Freed)
