Corinthians meet expert again, await Caixa data on the Arena | OneFootball

Corinthians took another step in its attempt to clarify the figures involving the Neo Química Arena debt. The club met again with expert Anísio Castelo Branco to discuss the verification of the amounts and move forward with updating the assessment. The meeting took place this Wednesday (9), according to information initially published by UOL Esporte and confirmed by Central do Timão.

Those present at the meeting included president Osmar Stabile, Romeu Tuma Júnior, who heads the Deliberative Council, Miguel Marques e Silva, president of the Guidance Council (Cori), as well as Aemir Benedito, a lifetime council member and Cori member. Also present were André Lavieri, Corinthians’ head of finance, Joana Saragoça, responsible for Neo Química Arena’s financial department, and Pedro Soares, the club’s legal director.

Photo: Disclosure/Corinthians

Pedro Soares attended the meeting remotely. The executive is in Argentina with the Corinthians delegation for the match against Estudiantes, scheduled for this Wednesday (9) in La Plata, for the first leg of the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals.

The next step considered essential by the club is receiving, from Caixa Econômica Federal, the documentation regarding payments made through the end of 2019. These records are needed so Corinthians can compare the bank’s information with the data it already has internally.

Based on this comparison, Anísio Castelo Branco will be able to review the calculations previously presented and establish a more precise update of the amount owed by the arena. Corinthians expects the documents to be sent by Caixa later this week.

The review will focus mainly on the period before 2019, when the club still does not have all the records needed to complete the analysis. Payments made afterward are already documented in Corinthians’ files.

Another point that came under scrutiny during the investigation concerns Caixa’s position in the case involving the Neo Química Arena debt. According to information obtained by UOL, the bank ratified the amounts it is defending in the lawsuit. The documentation is expected to be sent to Corinthians, allowing the club to assess the breakdown presented by the financial institution.

This ratification, however, does not mean Anísio’s work is finished. The figures will still need to go through a detailed review, taking into account the payments made over the years and the methodology used to update the outstanding balance.

The assessment previously produced by the expert considers the calculations adjusted through 2019. Therefore, it will be necessary to add the evolution of the debt in the following years so that the study reflects the current scenario.

The methodology also involves different monetary adjustment criteria. The study considers the application of the Long-Term Interest Rate (TJLP) during a certain period, until the later agreement was signed. After that, the adjustment began to consider the Interbank Deposit Certificate (CDI).

Anísio’s dealings with the Public Prosecutor’s Office were also addressed during the meeting. Corinthians members questioned the expert about the decision to send the assessment to the agency before holding a broader discussion of the figures with the club itself.

In addition to the technical issue, Corinthians representatives expressed concern about possible institutional impacts that the handling of the investigation could cause. The topic took up a significant part of the talks during the meeting.

Despite the discussions involving the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the main focus remained on the financial side. Reviewing the figures was treated as the priority, but its continuation is directly tied to the arrival of the documents under Caixa’s responsibility.

The possibility of Anísio officially joining an internal committee created to monitor Neo Química Arena’s finances was also among the topics discussed. For that to happen, Corinthians will still need to formalize it. The measure would allow the expert to take part directly in the analyses alongside club representatives.

Osmar Stabile has shown interest in speeding up the review of the Arena debt, but he intends to build broader political consensus before making decisions related to the assessment. For that reason, representatives from different internal bodies were involved in the discussions.

The meeting included members of the board, the Deliberative Council, Cori, and the Fiscal Council. The participation of these sectors is part of Stabile’s attempt to bring together different groups within the club around the analysis and jointly define the next steps.

During the meeting, the Corinthians president also committed himself to working to ensure that Anísio has access to the information needed to complete the study.

For now, the progress of the analysis depends mainly on the documentation to be sent by Caixa. After the records are received, Corinthians will be able to cross-check the bank’s data with its own files and verify whether the recorded payments match the amounts considered in the evolution of Neo Química Arena’s debt.

Once this stage is completed, it will be possible to continue reviewing the assessment and arrive at a more complete update on the size of the debt and the criteria used to adjust it over the years.

Public Prosecutor’s Office requests technical sector to recalculate the Arena debt

In addition to the meeting involving the Corinthians board, the São Paulo Public Prosecutor’s Office sent CAEX-Crim the documentation regarding the Neo Química Arena debt. The goal is for the technical sector to carry out a new analysis of the financing calculations and determine whether there is a mathematical basis for the R$ 255.7 million difference identified in an expert report recently submitted to the agency.

The order came from prosecutor Cassio Roberto Conserino, in a ruling signed on September 6. The document establishes the main points that must be examined by the technicians.

The source of the discrepancy lies in the charge brought by Caixa Econômica Federal against Corinthians. In the lawsuit filed in August 2019, the bank pointed to a debt of R$ 536,092,853.27. The assessment sent to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, however, calculated the balance at R$ 280,340,126.83, generating a difference of R$ 255,752,726.44.

The referral to CAEX-Crim, however, does not represent a conclusion by the Public Prosecutor’s Office as to which amount is correct. It will be up to the technicians to verify the methodology used and confirm or not the existence of the difference pointed out in the expert report.

To do this, the financing will be reconstructed from November 2013, when Corinthians signed the R$ 400 million contract. The analysis must follow the conditions set out in the agreement and its amendments, including the application of TJLP plus 3.4% per year.

The calculations will run through August 22, 2019, the date on which Caixa filed the lawsuit. In this process, the payments made by Corinthians and the respective deductions applied on the dates they occurred must be considered.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office also ordered the preparation of a detailed, chronologically organized calculation memory. The document must present the balance found by the technicians and place it side by side with the R$ 536.09 million charged by Caixa. If any difference is identified, it must be updated through August 2026.

Another point of the investigation will be the breakdown of the debt presented by Caixa. The technicians must verify whether the documentation provided by the bank makes it possible to identify how the balance was formed, in addition to separating the amounts referring to principal, overdue installments, charges, and fines.

The 10% fine applied by Caixa will also be part of the analysis. The bank calculated the penalty on R$ 487,357,139.34, resulting in a charge of R$ 48,735,713.93.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office wants to clarify whether this percentage should apply only to overdue installments or whether it could also be applied to amounts that had not yet come due. In the expert report submitted to the agency, the overdue installments were calculated at R$ 37,865,968.46, which would lead to a fine of R$ 3,786,596.85.

Based on the figures, CAEX-Crim must determine any possible difference and update it. The technicians will also analyze whether there is a basis for a possible refund of overpaid amounts, whether simple or double, if legal grounds supporting that possibility are found. This analysis, however, does not represent a determination by the Public Prosecutor’s Office that any amount be refunded.

Two other charges included in the debt will also be reviewed: R$ 1,025,698.99 related to delays and R$ 3,042,324.30 classified as “penalty.” The intention is to verify whether the amounts were calculated in accordance with the clauses and criteria established in the contract.

The investigation began after the Public Prosecutor’s Office received a complaint accompanied by the study prepared by Anísio. The assessment cast doubt on some of the criteria used to reach the amount charged by Caixa in 2019 and pointed to the absence of certain records capable of explaining how the debt was built up to R$ 536 million.

The agreement later signed between Corinthians and Caixa will also be analyzed. Among the documents to be considered is the minutes of the Deliberative Council meeting held in June 2022, when the council members approved the debt renegotiation.

At the time, there were internal questions about the amounts, charges, and the way the balance had been evolving. The change in the correction index was also among the topics discussed. Council member Rozallah Santoro expressed concern about the possible effects of the change on the future balance, while Roberto Gavioli, then in charge of the club’s financial area, defended the negotiated terms.

The expert report considers the use of TJLP until the new agreement was formalized. After the renegotiation, the debt began to use CDI as the reference for its adjustment.

CAEX-Crim must also assess arguments presented by Corinthians itself in the collection lawsuit. Among the points are questions about the interest applied throughout the contract, the possibility of interest on interest, and the way the fine was calculated on the remaining balance.

Another aspect that drew the Public Prosecutor’s Office’s attention is the possible “cascade mathematical effect.” The analysis intends to verify whether a possible reduction in the debt identified in the expert report could also alter the amount used as a reference in the campaign created to help pay off Neo Química Arena.

The initiative, launched by Gaviões da Fiel in November 2024, set a target close to R$ 700 million to pay off the stadium with Caixa. The Public Prosecutor’s Office ruling, however, does not indicate that this amount is incorrect. Any change will depend on confirmation of the differences found and an assessment of their impacts on the debt balance.

Currently, Neo Química Arena’s debt is estimated at approximately R$ 700 million. As the study initially presented considers figures only through 2019, it will still be necessary to incorporate later developments, including the conditions established in the 2022 renegotiation.

Once completed, the technical analysis will be sent to the civil inquiry led by prosecutor Luiz Ambra Neto. The proceeding investigates, among other points, the possibility of judicial intervention at Corinthians.

If relevant differences in the calculations are identified, the conclusions may contribute to the investigation of possible reckless management at the club. So far, however, the Public Prosecutor’s Office ruling does not assign individual responsibility to any executive.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.