Brazil’s Ambipar Faces New Creditor Appeal to Suspend September 1 Debt Vote
BRAZIL · COMPANIES
Key Facts
—What happened: Local creditors filed a new appeal to suspend Ambipar’s debt-plan meeting set for September 1.
—Who is behind it: Oliveira Trust, agent for the group’s debenture holders, and lender Sumitomo lead the push.
—The debt: The waste-management group is restructuring R$10.5 billion (US$2.04 billion) in court.
—The catch: The company has not published financial statements since mid-2025, so creditors would vote half-blind.
—The first attempt: The August 25 meeting died without a quorum; the second call needs no minimum attendance.
—What comes next: A Rio de Janeiro appeals court must rule before the September 1 session, or the vote goes ahead.
Brazilian creditors of the waste-management group have gone back to court to stop the September 1 creditors’ meeting, arguing they cannot vote on a R$10.5 billion (US$2.04 billion) recovery plan without seeing the company’s books.
The new request to stop the meeting
Local creditors filed a fresh appeal on August 27 to suspend the general creditors’ meeting scheduled for September 1. Valor Econômico reported the move exclusively.
The creditors want the meeting frozen until their broader appeal is definitively judged. As a fallback, they ask that the vote wait until Ambipar releases its overdue financial statements.
It is the second attempt in ten days. On August 19, Oliveira Trust, the fiduciary agent representing the company’s debenture holders, and Sumitomo, a bank creditor, asked the Rio de Janeiro business court to postpone the same meeting.
That first request only half-worked. The judge kept the date but ordered the company to share its numbers with creditors who ask for them, under court secrecy.
A meeting that died without a quorum
The first-call meeting went ahead on August 25 and collapsed within hours. Under Brazil’s bankruptcy law, a first call needs creditors holding more than half of each class of debt, measured by value.
The unsecured class showed up almost in full. About 95 percent of those creditors, mostly foreign holders of the group’s international bonds, were present, according to the Broadcast news agency.
But the law also counts labor creditors, secured lenders and suppliers as separate classes. Their absence made a quorum impossible, and the meeting was never formally opened.
That is why September 1 matters so much. At a second call, any number of creditors is enough, so a boycott by smaller classes cannot stop the vote.
Why Brazil’s local creditors are angry
The fight is about who shaped the plan. In July, the company signed a restructuring support agreement with holders of 53.8 percent of its overseas green bonds, the debt sold to fund environmental projects.
That deal swaps existing bonds, worth roughly US$1 billion, for US$925 million in new seven-year paper with fresh terms. Payments are also linked to the sale of court-ordered government debt claims the company holds.
Brazilian creditors fear the plan put to the vote will simply copy that agreement. They argue the treatment offered to foreign bondholders is better than what local lenders can expect.
A second sore point is management. The bondholder deal keeps controlling shareholder Tércio Borlenghi Jr. running the company, which sits badly with creditors who question what happened to its finances.
Vote first, numbers later?
The creditors’ core complaint is simple. The group has not published results for the third quarter of 2025, the full 2025 year, or the first two quarters of 2026.
Without those statements, they say, no one can judge whether the recovery plan is realistic. A vote on September 1 would be a vote in the dark.
The court has ordered the company to hand the documents to creditors who request them, but only under seal. Brazil’s securities regulator, the CVM, is separately pursuing former executives of the group.
One curiosity adds to the mistrust. Valor reported that the company books R$1.2 billion (US$233 million) of so-called pre-court-claims, apparently linked to the collapsed Banco Master, as cash on its balance sheet.
A parallel war over the courtroom itself
Oliveira Trust is also fighting to move the whole case out of Rio de Janeiro. It has appealed to the state appeals court, arguing the recovery belongs in São Paulo.
The agent says the group’s real decision-making sits in São Paulo city and Nova Odessa, an industrial town in the state’s interior. It points to the company’s own United States court filings, which list a São Paulo address.
The new suspension request is tied to that appeal. Creditors argue a court that may soon lose jurisdiction should not rush a binding vote on R$10.5 billion (US$2.04 billion) of claims.
How the company got here, and what to watch
The company grew from a Brazilian waste manager into a global environmental-services group, then crashed in 2025 amid a derivatives and confidence crisis. It filed for judicial recovery, Brazil’s Chapter 11-style protection, on October 20, 2025.
The case has since sprawled across borders. The company is trying to swap its United States Chapter 11 case for a Chapter 15 recognition process, over opposition from creditor Fundo Opportunity.
The next days bring three tests. The Rio appeals court may rule on suspension, the company may finally circulate its plan, and creditors will learn whether September 1 becomes a vote or another postponement.
If the vote happens and the plan passes, the judge can confirm it and bind all covered creditors. If the plan fails, Brazilian law opens the door to a creditor-written alternative, or to outright liquidation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Ambipar’s creditors asking the court to do?
Local creditors filed a new appeal on August 27, 2026 to suspend the creditors’ meeting set for September 1. They want it frozen until their appeal is judged or the company publishes its overdue financial statements.
Who is leading the push against the creditors’ meeting?
Oliveira Trust, the fiduciary agent for the group’s debenture holders, and Sumitomo, a bank creditor. They first petitioned the Rio de Janeiro business court on August 19, 2026.
How much debt is the company restructuring?
The group cited debts of R$10.5 billion (US$2.04 billion) when it filed for judicial recovery on October 20, 2025. Its deal with foreign bondholders covers roughly US$1 billion in overseas bonds.
Why was the August 25 meeting not held?
It lacked a quorum. About 95 percent of unsecured creditors attended, but Brazilian law requires more than half of every creditor class, and the labor, secured and supplier classes did not reach that bar.
What happens at the September 1 meeting?
It is a second call, so any number of creditors is enough to open it. Creditors would vote on the judicial recovery plan, unless a court suspends the session first.
Connected Coverage
This is a follow-up to Ambipar’s US$2 Billion Debt Vote Fails on Quorum, Reset for September 1. Earlier chapters: Court Blocks Central Bank in Ambipar Restructuring Case, Brazil’s Central Bank Wades Into the Ambipar Fight to Protect Hedging and Brazilian Banks Fight Foreign Bondholders Over Ambipar in US Court.
Sources: Valor Econômico, Estadão/Broadcast, Times Brasil/CNBC, Guia do Investidor. Exchange rate: US$1 = R$5.15 (August 28, 2026).
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