Brazil Retailers End Dispute Dating to 2009

Companies: Brazil

Casas Bahia, Brazil’s large home-goods retailer now under court-supervised restructuring, and GPA, owner of the Pão de Açúcar supermarkets, settled their dispute over a 2009 partnership on Friday 13 November 2026. Casas Bahia keeps tax credits GPA gave up and takes on tax debts, while GPA’s own filing adds R$174 million (about US$31 million) in reversed provisions.

What the Two Companies Agreed

Both companies published a “Fato Relevante” (a material-fact notice) on Friday 13 November 2026 with the CVM, Brazil’s securities regulator. Grupo Casas Bahia (BHIA3 on the São Paulo stock exchange, in judicial recovery, Brazil’s court-supervised protection from creditors) and Companhia Brasileira de Distribuição, known as GPA (PCAR3), said the deal closes pending issues from their 4 December 2009 association agreement.

The two companies also committed to cooperate and not to sue each other on the subjects it covers.

Who Gets What

Casas Bahia said GPA’s right to a share of PIS/COFINS credits, federal tax credits that arose when state sales tax was removed from the tax base, is extinguished. The company put them at about R$700 million (US$124 million) and said it may now use them without passing money to GPA, while GPA’s notice gives the figure as R$708 million (US$125 million).

In return, Casas Bahia said it takes responsibility for contingencies tied to the 2009 agreement, including tax debts of about R$424 million (US$75 million) in nominal value. GPA said its duty to reimburse Casas Bahia for those tax contingencies, estimated at R$424 million, is extinguished.

A R$231.8 million (US$41 million) credit that Casas Bahia holds against GPA, recognised in arbitration, remains owed, Casas Bahia said. It will be paid under GPA’s out-of-court recovery plan, and enforcement of that award is suspended until the securities the plan provides for are subscribed.

GPA said it keeps paying the tax instalment plans linked to the 2009 agreement and will reimburse Casas Bahia for certain past guarantee and legal-process costs. Neither company disclosed those amounts.

What It Means for You

For investors in either stock, the notices show a trade rather than a cash payment: Casas Bahia gains usable tax credits but takes on debts of about US$75 million. GPA said it will reverse a R$174 million (US$31 million) provision in the fourth quarter of 2026, after it wrote off the full R$708 million of credits in the third quarter.

Casas Bahia said the settlement brings “more legal certainty and financial predictability” and lowers future litigation costs. GPA said it “resolves one more structural liability”; our earlier reports cover the

Casas Bahia court case and GPA’s debt plan.

What Is Not Known

The notices, as we read them, give no net value of the deal for either company. They also give no effective date or further approvals needed.

What to Watch Next

GPA’s fourth-quarter 2026 results will show the R$174 million reversal, and the date is not confirmed. The date for subscribing the securities under GPA’s recovery plan is also not confirmed.

Our reports on both companies are linked above. More is in our

Brazil coverage.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did Casas Bahia and GPA agree?

They ended disputes from their December 2009 association agreement. GPA gave up its claim to about R$700 million (US$124 million) of tax credits, and Casas Bahia took on contingencies including tax debts of about R$424 million (US$75 million).

Does GPA still owe Casas Bahia money?

Yes. A R$231.8 million (US$41 million) credit recognised in arbitration remains owed and will be paid under GPA’s out-of-court recovery plan.