Bahamas Sets 8 October Hearing on Banco Master Fund
FINANCE · BAHAMAS
Key Facts
- —The country The Bahamas is an offshore financial centre a short flight from Miami. Its courts are now dealing with the fallout of Brazil’s collapsed Banco Master.
- —Why it matters The bank’s liquidator alleges money was routed through a Bahamas fund into US property, including a ranch in Aspen and homes in Miami.
- —Why now Nassau’s Tribune published extracts of the liquidator’s sworn affidavit on Monday 5 October, three days before a court hearing on closing the fund.
- —What happened Provisional liquidators now run FAEX Fund Ltd. The Chief Justice hears the petition to wind it up on Thursday 8 October.
- —The numbers The affidavit cites US$5.2 billion of value held in the FAEX structure and an estimated US$8.5 billion hole at Banco Master.
- —What it means for you US real estate, Delaware companies and offshore funds are now part of a cross-border asset hunt for the bank’s creditors.
- —Still open The claims are allegations in a civil filing. No court has ruled on them. Vorcaro and FAEX are presumed innocent, and Vorcaro has not been convicted.
A fund registered in The Bahamas sat at the top of a structure used to move billions of dollars out of Brazil’s failed Banco Master, the bank’s liquidator alleges in court papers. The sworn statement, reported on Monday 5 October by The Tribune in Nassau, says some of the money ended up in luxury homes in Colorado and Florida. For US readers, the Banco Master fund case shows how a Brazilian bank collapse now reaches into American property and offshore finance.
The Supreme Court of The Bahamas has already appointed provisional liquidators to take control of the fund, FAEX Fund Ltd. On Thursday 8 October, Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder is due to hear the full petition to wind up this Banco Master fund.
What the Liquidator Alleges
Banco Master was a Brazilian lender controlled by banker Daniel Vorcaro. The central bank classed its group as small, with 0.57% of system assets. The Banco Central do Brasil ordered its extrajudicial liquidation on Tuesday 18 November 2025, citing a severe liquidity crisis and serious rule breaches. EFB Regimes Especiais de Empresas was named liquidator, G1 reported.
Eduardo Felix Bianchini, Banco Master’s lead liquidator, signed the affidavit on Monday 20 July and filed it with the Supreme Court of The Bahamas. The Tribune published extracts on Monday.
In it, Bianchini alleges that FAEX was the “first offshore holding company and transmission vehicle” in what he calls an “apparent FAEX money laundering scheme.” He says the scheme “operated under the direction of Mr Vorcaro.”
According to the filing, Banco Master and its affiliates swapped cash and other assets for assets whose prices were heavily inflated, using related parties. The value was then allegedly moved up through a chain of Brazilian investment funds to FAEX.
Bianchini says FAEX had no employees and no legitimate trading business. He cites “the most recently (May 26, 2026) reported $5.2bn of value held within the FAEX structure.”
The affidavit also claims that one investment of US$9,620 in the structure grew to US$3.4 billion in a single year. Bianchini calls that growth “incapable of reasonable commercial explanation.”
The Tribune reported that the structure was used to misappropriate some US$1.6 billion. The extracts it published do not show how that figure was reached.
The US Property Trail
The filing names US assets. Bianchini says Banco Master money was routed to Mosaic Financial, a Nassau asset manager he describes as “an asset manager for” Vorcaro.
He alleges those funds bought “luxury real estate, vessels, and artwork” for Vorcaro. He cites a home and ranch in Aspen, Colorado, for about US$77 million, and several Miami homes, one priced at US$85.2 million.
Vorcaro was a purported “tenant” of those properties but paid no rent, the affidavit says, citing records disclosed by Mosaic’s US arm. Another Bahamas vehicle, Mosaic Short Duration Fund, allegedly sent about US$230 million to Delaware companies linked to the purchases.
The Tribune stressed that there was no suggestion of wrongdoing by Mosaic or by Winterbotham Trust Company, FAEX’s Nassau administrator. Records at Winterbotham show a US$36.46 million transfer from the fund’s account, the affidavit says.
Bianchini compares the case to the FTX collapse, the crypto exchange that was based in The Bahamas. He also cites the Madoff and Stanford frauds.
How the Bahamas Case Fits the Brazil Probe
The Bahamas court first recognised the Brazilian liquidation in a ruling dated Tuesday 26 May, as Metrópoles and G1 reported in June. That ruling let EFB act for five Banco Master entities in the islands.
Metrópoles reported that the liquidator was targeting nine funds and companies registered in The Bahamas, including FAEX Fund Ltd. and Mosaic Financial Ltd.
The Banco Master fund petition also cites a governance gap. Its two corporate directors resigned on Monday 19 January 2026 and no one replaced them, the affidavit says. The liquidator’s Bahamian lawyers, Lennox Paton, say that is contrary to Bahamian law for licensed funds.
Forensic accountant John Bain of Grant Thornton (Bahamas) is the fund’s joint provisional liquidator. He works with Kevin Hellard of Grant Thornton UK and John Skelton of Grant Thornton BVI.
In Brazil, Vorcaro is under investigation in the Federal Police’s Operation Compliance Zero. He has been in pre-trial detention since Wednesday 4 March, Poder360 reported. His lawyers asked on Friday 18 September for his release, according to Brasil de Fato.
Rio Times readers can follow the domestic side in Brazil’s Supreme Court Freezes Banco Master Cases Until After the Election and Brazil Prison Vote Lets Jailed Banker Daniel Vorcaro Cast a Ballot.
What It Means for You
For investors, the Banco Master fund case is a reminder that offshore fund labels say little about what sits underneath. Lightly staffed funds in small jurisdictions can hold assets that are hard to trace.
For anyone dealing in high-end property in Aspen or Miami, foreign liquidators are now openly mapping ownership chains back to Brazil. That can lead to claims on assets held through US shell companies.
The stabiliser is that the process is working through courts. The Bahamas has recognised the Brazilian liquidation, and independent accountants now control FAEX. Any recovered money goes to the bank’s creditors.
What Is Not Known
The affidavit is one side of a civil case, and Vorcaro and FAEX are presumed innocent. Vorcaro’s response to these specific claims is not known, and no court has tested them.
It is not known whether the liquidator has gone to US courts over the Aspen, Miami or Delaware assets. How much money can actually be recovered is also unclear.
The Rio Times could not independently confirm the US$1.6 billion figure or the affidavit’s estimate of the bank’s US$8.5 billion shortfall.
What is FAEX Fund Ltd.?
FAEX Fund Ltd. is an investment fund set up in The Bahamas in 2017. Banco Master’s liquidator alleges it sat at the top of a structure that held assets diverted from the Brazilian bank.
What happens at the 8 October hearing?
Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder of the Supreme Court of The Bahamas is due to hear the petition to wind up FAEX. Provisional liquidators from Grant Thornton already control the fund.
Has Daniel Vorcaro been convicted?
No. Vorcaro is under investigation in Brazil and has been in pre-trial detention since March 2026. The claims in the Bahamas affidavit are allegations that no court has ruled on.
Sources: Banco Central do Brasil · The Tribune (Nassau) · G1 · Metrópoles · Poder360 · Brasil de Fato
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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