By Brazil Stock Guide – Brazilian environmental services company Ambipar Participações e Empreendimentos S.A. (B3: AMBP3) has hired FTI Consulting, one of the world’s leading forensic and corporate restructuring firms, to conduct an independent investigation into the financial operations overseen by former Chief Financial Officer João Daniel Piran de Arruda.
The decision, approved by the Board of Directors on October 20, 2025, coincided with Ambipar’s judicial reorganization filing in Rio de Janeiro — a measure designed to preserve the company’s operations, protect thousands of jobs, and sustain its essential role in Brazil’s environmental services sector.
The move follows detailed reporting by the Brazil Stock Guide, which on Sunday revealed how a hedging contract engineered under Arruda’s supervision backfired, turning what was meant to be a defensive currency swap into a mechanism that drained Ambipar’s liquidity and triggered cascading margin calls. The arrangement, later linked to the company’s green bonds, became the centerpiece of a confidence crisis that pushed the group into court protection.
According to the board minutes, the FTI probe will be “technical, impartial, and comprehensive,” focusing on the swap transactions and investment structures executed by the former finance team. The company cited growing margin pressures and cross-default risks, including exposure related to its 2024 and 2025 green bonds, as central factors leading to the collapse.
Based in Washington and operating in more than 30 countries, FTI Consulting has a long track record in complex financial investigations and governance failures, including major corporate fraud and restructuring cases worldwide. Its appointment marks a turning point for Ambipar — from crisis containment to forensic accountability.
The CFO’s Role in the Collapse
João Daniel Piran de Arruda became Ambipar’s Chief Financial Officer in August 2024, bringing experience in derivatives and corporate debt from major banks. He led a shift of the company’s hedge portfolio to Deutsche Bank, embedding clauses that linked Ambipar’s cash flow to the market value of its own green bonds. As those bonds fell, margin calls surged, draining liquidity and exposing structural weaknesses in the company’s financial management.
Arruda resigned abruptly in September 2025, days before the hedge collapsed and the COEs tied to the bonds were liquidated. His exit accelerated the market fallout and left Ambipar scrambling to contain damage. With FTI Consulting now conducting a forensic review of his tenure, the former CFO’s role sits at the heart of one of Brazil’s most consequential corporate governance failures in recent years.
Read more: The Man Who Triggered a Financial Earthquake
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