Brasil Bitcoin calls a shareholders’ meeting to decide on the exclusion of a partner holding a 40% stake
Cryptocurrency broker with "high daily volume" faces clashes with requests to remove a partner, who counters by asking the other two to stop being administrators
Brazil Bitcoin Serviços Digitais Ltda. (Brasil Bitcoin) is facing a serious conflict among its owners, according to documents at the commercial registry in São Paulo and analyzed by the Livecoins newsroom this Wednesday (7).
As a result, the market is learning about the possible removal of a member of the cryptocurrency exchange’s leadership. The platform ranks fourth by trading volume over the past 24 hours, according to the Mercado Cripto tool maintained by this news outlet.
In a statement sent to Livecoins, Erick Crus, a partner holding a 40% stake in Brasil Bitcoin, confirmed that there is a disagreement between the partners and said he left the company’s management in February, with his resignation already registered with the Board of Trade.
According to Erick, he formally raised concerns about the exchange’s management and requested an independent investigation. He also says that, rather than addressing his request, administrators Jorge de Almeida Alves and Marco Vinicius Castellari proposed expelling him from the company, a measure he considers retaliatory. Read the full statement below.
The dispute exposes a rift in the business’s management, with accusations on both sides of breaches of the partnership agreement. The controlling partners have urgently scheduled a meeting to discuss the compulsory removal of their partner.#FedMinutesFocusOnOctoberPause
Brasil Bitcoin partner’s proposed expulsion involves allegations of barriers to the company’s growth
Erick Carlos Castilho Crus holds a 40% stake in the share capital of the Brazilian virtual asset services provider. The managing partners, Jorge de Almeida Alves and Marco Vinicius Castellari, have therefore proposed the compulsory removal of their partner over alleged misconduct.
Alves and Castellari justified the request by citing alleged threats to the continued development of Brasil Bitcoin’s business. The document points to discord among the partners, with negative consequences for the platform’s survival in the cryptoasset ecosystem.
In addition, the notice cites acts by the minority partner that allegedly harmed the conduct of routine business operations. The company’s bylaws and Article 1,085 of the Civil Code authorize compulsory removal, provided the right to a full defense is guaranteed, as they have stated.
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Partner facing expulsion also seeks to remove the other two from the exchange
On the other hand, Crus made serious proposals concerning the current leadership structure of the Brasil Bitcoin group. The partner called for Alves and Castellari to be removed from their respective management positions, with separate votes on each item.
The business owner’s request includes commissioning an external investigation to review the company’s accounts and transfers. This independent review requires all company records to be fully preserved for future examination by external professionals.
The proposals highlight a breakdown of trust between the parties in the management of assets held on the trading platform. Brazil’s cryptocurrency market is now following the unfolding tensions within the platform’s leadership.
Meeting fails to reach quorum, forcing exchange to publish notice of a second call
The first official meeting to decide the dispute was scheduled for Wednesday morning (7). The absence of the minimum quorum required by law made it impossible to vote on the agenda items, due to Crus’s confirmed absence.
The organizers issued a new notice for next Monday (12), in a hybrid format, to ensure the process can proceed. The partners will be able to attend in person at the Mattos Filho law firm’s office in the city of São Paulo.
The virtual option will take place via videoconferencing app, with identification documents validated by the organizers submitted in advance. The agenda for the new meeting retains all the items listed for a final vote by the partners present.
The meeting agenda provides for clarification of the technical impact of losing powers of attorney and access to operational accounts. Participants will vote on adopting mandatory prior mediation in an attempt to reach an agreement before taking extreme legal action.
Livecoins was unable to contact the parties before this article went to press, but the door remains open for the partners involved to comment and explain the situation to customers.
It is worth noting that Brazil is facing a wave of business closures following recent Central Bank resolutions, and companies such as Bitybank, Coinext, and NovaDAX have already shut down. Finally, it is unclear whether tensions between the partners could hinder Brasil Bitcoin’s plans as it nears the final stage of obtaining regulatory approval, given that the deadline is next October 30.
PRESS STATEMENT
I am Erick Crus, a partner holding a 40% stake in Brasil Bitcoin Serviços Digitais Ltda. There is indeed a disagreement between the partners, which only became public through actions taken by the company’s own administrators. I am therefore speaking out to the extent permitted by confidentiality.
Brasil Bitcoin is not the same as Jorge de Almeida Alves and Marco Vinicius Castellari, who manage it today, and it is much bigger than the two of them. I am not an administrator: I left management in February, and my resignation has already been filed with the Board of Trade.
I formally raised serious concerns about the exchange’s management and requested an independent investigation. Instead of addressing them, the administrators proposed expelling me without citing any specific facts, solely because I asked for information, as is the right of any partner. The measure is clearly retaliatory, as are the dismissal of the compliance team and other actions taken against the control and compliance departments. I did not attend the meeting because the notice of the meeting does not comply with the corporate agreements signed by the parties. I will not go into further detail due to the need for confidentiality.
I chose the path of compliance, controls, and risk management. Unfortunately, Jorge and Marco chose other paths. I will not allow their unilateral actions to put the company at risk and harm so many people, and I continue working to ensure everything is resolved properly.