Brazil Securities Commission rejects statute-of-limitations defence and acquits Petrobras executives and Planner Corretora and Fornax respondents in two sanctioning proceedings

The Brazil Securities Commission (CVM) Board of Commissioners decided two administrative sanctioning proceedings, unanimously acquitting all respondents. In the case concerning Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) executives, the Board also rejected, by majority, a preliminary argument that the CVM’s punitive claim was time-barred. The Petrobras proceeding examined whether Maria das Graças Silva Foster, Almir Guilherme Barbassa, José Alcides Santoro Martins, José Antonio de Figueiredo, José Carlos Cosenza and José Miranda Formigli Filho breached the duty of care under Article 153 of Law 6,404/76 in relation to a 24 July 2013 decision to maintain investments in the Premium I and II refinery projects; the rapporteur, Director João Accioly, had voted to recognise prescription, while Director Marina Copola and Acting President Otto Lobo disagreed on that point but joined the acquittals. In the second proceeding, the Board acquitted Planner Corretora de Valores S.A. and Artur Martins de Figueiredo of alleged breaches of the duty of diligence, and Fornax Consultoria Empresarial S.A. (formerly FMD Gestão de Recursos S.A.), Arnaldo José da Silva and Fábio Antônio Garcez Barbosa of alleged breaches of the duty of loyalty, linked to investments in the FIRF Pyxis Institucional IMA-B fund that led to non-compliance with the limit in Article 14 of National Monetary Council Resolution 3,922/10, cited as a breach of Article 16(I) of CVM Instruction 558.