Haddad: Lula assured Vorcaro of the Central Bank's "technical decision" regarding the Master Plan.
"That's what he said: 'Look, the decision about you is up to the Central Bank, it's a technical one. If it's good, good, if it's bad, bad'," reported the Finance Minister.
247 - Finance Minister Fernando Haddad (PT) stated that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) made it clear to banker Daniel Vorcaro, controller of Banco Master, that any decisions regarding the financial institution would be the exclusive responsibility of the Central Bank and based on technical criteria, without any political interference. The minister made this statement while commenting on a meeting held at the Planalto Palace in December 2024, which was also attended by the president of the Central Bank, Gabriel Galípolo.
In an interview with MetropolisHaddad emphasized that the president's stance was one of respect for the autonomy of the monetary authority. According to the minister, Lula reinforced that decisions related to Banco Master should follow exclusively technical parameters. "Look, the decision about you is up to the Central Bank, it's a technical decision. A technical decision will be made. If it's good, good; if it's bad, bad," Lula told Vorcaro, according to Haddad.
Haddad also described the context in which the Central Bank began to deepen its investigation into the case. According to him, after taking over the institution, Gabriel Galípolo identified the seriousness of the situation and adopted the formal procedures foreseen. “Galípolo took office, saw that he was facing a serious problem, opened internal procedures to investigate, confirmed the billion-dollar fraud, took all the necessary measures, internally and externally, for a robust decision, a sustainable decision before any court. That is the right thing to do,” declared the Minister of Finance.
The head of the economic area also made a point of dismissing any interpretation of irregularity in the fact that the president had received the banker. According to Haddad, at the time of the meeting there were no concrete elements indicating a crime or fraud, only rumors about difficulties in running the bank. “There were many rumors that things weren't going well. It was hearsay. The rumor had existed since 2024. There was a problem, but you didn't have any indication of a crime, of fraud. It seemed like a poorly done deal, that wasn't going to work out,” he explained.
According to Haddad, the situation only changed at the beginning of 2025, when more consistent information emerged that motivated the intensification of inspections and the involvement of other agencies. “Now, starting in early 2025, there are already concrete elements. Galípolo was very concerned, initiating internal procedures to delve into the inspections. And then there was an almost immediate involvement of the Public Prosecutor's Office,” he stated.
When questioned about the possibility of having warned Lula beforehand not to meet with Vorcaro, Haddad said he was unaware of the presidential agenda and stressed that he has no relationship with the banker. “I didn’t even know he was going to meet with him. I don’t know this person. Until recently, I didn’t know if he would even be in that environment,” the minister declared, reinforcing that the government’s actions followed institutional procedures and respected the autonomy of the responsible bodies.
