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The Owner of Banco Master Bought Three Jets for R$ 258 Million Up Front While the Federal Police Investigated Billion-Dollar Frauds; Arrest and Liquidation of the Bank Expose the Scheme
The arrest of Daniel Vorcaro, 42, controller of Banco Master, exposed not only the collapse of a financial institution facing increasing pressure from the Central Bank but also a pattern of asset expansion that caught the attention of the Federal Police.
detained at São Paulo’s Guarulhos Airport on Monday (17) while attempting to board a private jet, the businessman immediately became the main target of Operation Compliance Zero, an investigation into a billion-dollar fraud involving credit securities issued by the bank itself.
At the same time, the fleet of luxury aircraft that Vorcaro bought upfront in recent years came to light, a move that added to the suspicions of the Federal Police.
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The Fleet of Million-Dollar Jets Acquired in Less Than Three Years
Documents from ANAC show that Daniel Vorcaro purchased three executive jets between February 2022 and August 2024, paying R$ 258 million without financing. All the aircraft were registered in the name of Viking Participações Ltda, a holding company based in Belo Horizonte solely controlled by him, with a social capital of R$ 100 million.
The fact that none of the jets were pledged to banks reinforced the perception that the businessman had unusual liquidity for the period.
The most expensive jet is the Gulfstream GV-SP, manufactured in 2010 and acquired for R$ 120 million in June 2023. With a range of about 7,800 kilometers and capacity for 20 occupants, it is an aircraft designed for non-stop intercontinental flights. According to the Federal Police, this was the plane Vorcaro would use to fly from Greater São Paulo to Malta in southern Europe when he was detained.
The range of the model allows for trips like Belo Horizonte to Lisbon without stops, which reinforced the suspicion of an attempted escape.
Another jet purchased by the businessman is the Dassault Falcon 7X, valued at R$ 116.7 million and acquired in August 2024. The model has three engines, a range of over 11,000 kilometers, and advanced navigation systems, being used even by air forces of various countries. The aircraft can accommodate up to 15 passengers and was imported from a company specializing in high-end aircraft from Espírito Santo.
The fleet also includes a Dassault Falcon 2000, purchased for R$ 21.3 million in February 2022. With a range of 7,400 kilometers and capacity for 21 people, it is the most versatile of the three jets. Despite being the cheapest model in the fleet, it still represents a significant asset in the executive aviation market.
All the aircraft were operating exclusively for Viking, without rentals for air taxis, which evidences personal and direct corporate use by the businessman.
The Advancement of the Investigation and the Operation That Led to Vorcaro’s Arrest
Operation Compliance Zero was initiated by the Federal Police to investigate the issuance of false credit securities by Banco Master. According to the Federal Police, the institution offered CDBs and other structured papers that promised earnings up to 40 percent above market rates.
In practice, part of these securities had no real backing or contained fraudulent information, which characterizes crimes of fraudulent management, reckless management, document forgery, and organized crime.
The Federal Police’s Director-General, Andrei Rodrigues, stated that the losses under investigation could reach R$ 12 billion. Seven arrest warrants and 25 search and seizure orders were executed in various states, including São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Bahia, and the Federal District.
Vorcaro’s partner, Augusto Lima, was also arrested, and the president of BRB, Paulo Henrique Costa, had assets seized and was removed by court order.
The investigations began in 2024 after a request from the Federal Public Ministry, which had evidence of the creation of unsecured credit portfolios. These portfolios were later sold to other institutions and, after monitoring by the Central Bank, replaced with new securities that were equally problematic.
The Federal Police points out that there was an organized internal structure within Banco Master to support the fraud, involving executives and collaborators of the institution.
The Extrajudicial Liquidation of Banco Master and the Impact on Investors
Hours after Vorcaro’s arrest, the Central Bank ordered the extrajudicial liquidation of Banco Master. The decision immediately suspended the institution’s operations and rendered the assets of the controllers and former administrators unavailable.
The announcement came a day after Fictor Holding Financeira presented a proposal to purchase the bank, an operation that envisaged an emergency injection of R$ 3 billion supposedly coming from funds in the United Arab Emirates. The deal needed approval from the Central Bank and CADE but did not advance.
With the liquidation ordered, investors with up to R$ 250,000 in products covered by the FGC can request reimbursement through the fund’s app as soon as the registration is released.
Those with amounts above this limit will depend on the asset assessment made by the liquidator, a process that involves asset collection, formation of the creditors’ panel, and conversion of assets into cash. There is no forecast for deadlines or amounts for those outside the FGC coverage.
Banco Master was founded in 1996 as Banco Investmaster and rebranded in 2018 after a restructuring that gave rise to the current brand. It focused on the issuance of credit securities, promissory notes, and structured operations, in addition to maintaining Master SA Corretora de Câmbio.
The collapse of the institution, combined with revelations about the fleet of million-dollar jets, adds a new dimension to the investigations, which now seek to ascertain the origin of the funds used in the aircraft purchases and the real scope of the financial fraud scheme.
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