In the latest twist in the Banco Master liquidation case—following STF Minister Dias Toffoli's December 27 rejection of the Central Bank's bid to exclude its Fiscalization Director from the December 30 confrontation—two justice officials visited the São Paulo office before Christmas seeking liquidator Eduardo Félix Bianchini, fueling expectations of summons in the ongoing legal disputes.
The officials targeted Bianchini, a retired Central Bank (BC) employee appointed to oversee the liquidation of Daniel Vorcaro's Banco Master. Unavailable as he was out of town with family, Bianchini holds access to key bank contracts and payments, including R$3.6 million monthly to the office of Minister Alexandre de Moraes' relatives, according to O Globo.
Vorcaro's defense has accused the BC of leveraging the liquidator to gather information, as alleged in a petition to TCU Minister Jhonatan de Jesus (revealed by Metrópoles). Toffoli denied dispatching the officials. The BC, already challenging Director Ailton de Aquino Santos' involvement in the confrontation with Vorcaro and former BRB President Paulo Henrique Costa, is now considering a writ of mandamus to STF to block it, arguing neither the regulator nor its director are under investigation.
Toffoli previously deemed Aquino's participation essential to clarify BC's knowledge of Master irregularities, fiscalization steps, and process lapses. The ANBCB, representing BC auditors, decried the hearing: 'What's the logic of confronting Vorcaro, Paulo Costa, and Director Ailton?', questioned President Thiago Rodrigues Cavalcanti, seeing it as pressure on staff.
A retired BC technician described STF and TCU interferences as unprecedented and potentially intimidatory. Former BC Director Luiz Fernando Figueiredo lambasted: 'TCU and STF have little idea what they're doing. It was a massive fraud, a collegiate decision with robust documentation.' TCU Minister Jhonatan de Jesus has questioned the BC on the liquidation's haste, though the regulator omissions probe remains sealed. Vorcaro's lawyer, Walfrido Warde, did not respond.
