The National Monetary Council (CMN) approved Resolution 5.343/26 on September 24, 2026, to change rules for funds that invest in legal and arbitration credits. This measure updates Resolution 2.907/01, which governs the creation and operation of FIDCs and FIC-FIDCs, funds that buy claims and expect to be paid later. Starting October 13, 2026, these funds cannot make new investments in credits from lawsuits or arbitration until the money is certain and due.
New Rules for Credit Purchases
The new resolution sets strict requirements for buying credits from lawsuits. The court judgment must already be final, known as “transit in julgado.” If the court orders payment, that specific order must also be final. If the debtor appeals the payment order or files execution challenges, those appeals must also be decided and closed before the fund can buy the credit. For arbitration credits, the fund must wait until the deadline to challenge the arbitral award has passed, or the challenge itself must be finished.
Under the old rules, a fund could buy a credit as soon as a court recognized the right to payment. The new resolution stops this practice. The CMN states that funds can only negotiate credits after all arguments about the amount and the obligation to pay are settled. This change forces the funds to wait until the money is liquid, certain, and exigible before they can add it to their portfolio.
Requirements for Arbitration Credits
The resolution mandates that a fund must wait for the deadline to file a lawsuit challenging the arbitral award to pass. Alternatively, the challenge itself must be finalized before the fund can buy the credit. A final arbitral award alone is not sufficient to purchase the credit.
Impact on Existing Portfolios
Funds that already own these credits have until January 4, 2027, to adjust to the new standards. They must follow stricter pricing methods and get an independent audit. The resolution does not force them to sell the credits they already own, but it changes how they must manage those assets. They cannot rely on their own internal estimates to value the claims anymore. Instead, they need an independent method to check the value.
For the broader market, this regulation changes the terrain for funds that typically hold litigation assets. The new standards make it harder to acquire these credits and more expensive to manage them. This could lead to a consolidation of the market, as smaller funds may struggle to meet the higher compliance costs and operational requirements. The rules fundamentally alter the risk profile of these financial products.
