By Brazil Stock Guide – Brazil’s Unigel Participações S.A., the chemical group controlled by the Slezynger family, has formally exited the public-company regime after the nation’s securities regulator approved the cancellation of its Category A issuer registration. The move closes a chapter that began more than a decade ago, when the privately held group prepared for an IPO that never took place.
The delisting comes as Unigel — founded in 1966 by Henri Slezynger — faces almost R$4 billion in liabilities and mounting financial pressure. The company completed an out-of-court restructuring in January 2025 that cut its debt roughly in half, but liquidity constraints have persisted amid weak petrochemical spreads and operational setbacks.
In August, Unigel obtained a 60-day precautionary injunction (“tutela cautelar”) from a São Paulo court, suspending debt collections and lawsuits to give breathing room for talks with creditors, including Itaú BBA, Bradesco, and BTG Pactual. The company is also seeking to raise up to US$100 million in fresh capital to reinforce liquidity and focus on completing its new sulfuric acid plant, slated for completion in December 2025 and start-up in early 2026.
The Slezynger family remains at the helm of the business, which operates major plants in Brazil and Mexico producing styrenics, acrylics, and fertilizers. But a prolonged slump in margins, coupled with high energy costs and the loss of Petrobras-leased fertilizer units in Bahia and Sergipe, has eroded profitability. Petrobras has since approved a deal to retake control of those assets, easing Unigel’s obligations but further reducing its footprint in fertilizers.
The company’s leadership has also been in flux: CEO Dário Gaeta stepped down in August, and Helena Ramos, Unigel’s CFO and investor-relations head, took over on an interim basis. S&P Global maintains Unigel’s credit on negative outlook, citing persistent liquidity risks and warning that the company could still seek full judicial protection if negotiations stall.
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