Moody's changes Brazil's outlook to stable from positive, affirms Ba1 ratings
SAO PAULO, May 30 (Reuters) - Moody's Ratings on Friday changed its outlook on Brazil to stable from positive while affirming its Ba1 ratings, citing a deterioration in debt affordability and "slower-than-expected progress in addressing spending rigidity and building credibility around fiscal policy."
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Itau presses suit against former CFO after settling with ex-consultant
SAO PAULO, June 2 (Reuters) - Itau Unibanco( opens new tab, Latin America's largest private lender, is dropping a lawsuit against a past consultant but proceeding with litigation against former Chief Financial Officer Alexsandro Broedel Lopes, whom it accuses of diverting funds while at the bank. Itau alleges that the consultant, in collaboration with Broedel, breached the bank's policies by engaging in irregular payments for consultancy reports. Broedel is a senior officer at Spain's Santander ( opens new tab and is expected to take over as chief accounting officer, the bank said. On Monday, Itau confirmed it had reached a settlement with Eliseu Martins, under which the consultant agreed to pay an additional 2.5 million reais ($440,000) to the bank, bringing the total amount returned to 4 million reais. Under the settlement, seen by Reuters, Martins said Broedel was his de facto business partner, collaborating on certain consulting work and accounting reports, receiving 40% of revenues generated by those services. Martins noted that he had no knowledge of who authorized and processed payments within Itau's system, nor was he familiar with the bank's internal governance structure. The consultant claimed Broedel had told him that their partnership was known to Itau. In a statement, Itau said the consultant's agreement "unequivocally confirms the internal investigations conducted by the bank and which formed the basis for the adoption of the relevant judicial measures." The bank also said it will press on with its legal action against Broedel. Broedel did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Santander declined to comment. Broedel's representatives have previously said their client denied any wrongdoing.
