Apex Partners faces debt crisis and scrutiny over corporate ties

Apex Partners, an investment platform based in Espírito Santo, is facing a financial crisis with reported bank debts totaling R$ 201.7 million. These loans, involving Sicoob, BTG Pactual, and Banco Daycoval, were secured with personal guarantees from the company's partners. The firm recently obtained a 60-day judicial injunction to protect its assets from seizure and liquidation while awaiting an external audit to finalize its total liabilities.

Corporate documents reveal a complex relationship between Apex Partners and Rhino Securitizadora. In early January 2026, Rhino approved a R$ 60 million debenture issuance linked to BRM Apex Investimentos. One day after this issuance, Pedro Chieppe Ferraço, son of the Governor of Espírito Santo, was elected as Rhino's compliance director. At the time, Ferraço was already a direct shareholder of Apex.

This overlap is significant as the debenture issuance was backed by credit rights where BRM Apex was a central party. Furthermore, preliminary judicial filings indicate that R$ 452.1 million of Apex's total R$ 985.6 million liability consists of debentures issued through Rhino, representing nearly half of the company's total debt. These figures remain subject to validation by an independent audit.