Bank of Brazil Suspends Bid Process after Results Leaked in Advance

04/26/2017 - 12h11

The Bank of Brazil (Banco do Brasil) decided not to ratify the result of a bidding process for an advertising agency, whose winning name was provided to Folha in advance, until an internal audit looks into evidence that the competition was manipulated.

As the newspaper revealed in its Tuesday (the 25th) edition, the name of the first place candidate, agency Multi Solution, was obtained by a reporter four days before the envelopes officializing the results were even opened.

There is evidence that there was manipulation of the process in favor of the agency by the Brazilian State Owned Bank. The Bank denies any such action, as does the President of the agency, Pedro Queirolo.

This is the largest public bidding process held so far under Michel Temer's Government. Multi Solution and two other agencies are splitting a contract worth as much as R$500 million (US$ 159 million) per year, renewable for up to a limit of 60 months, for a total of R$2,5 billion (US$ 794 million), without accounting for eventual increases.

The leaking of the result irritated the Presidential Planalto Palace, which sent representatives to the BB to try to find a quick solution for the issue.

During their conversations, it was decided that the bank would suspend the results of the bidding process until the details in the case have been clarified. There is strong pressure for the annulation of the bidding process.

Independently, the BB entered into contact with the President of the TCU (Federal Accounts Tribunal), Raimundo Carreiro. Inside the court, the move was seen as strategic, since there was already a movement among the justices defending an intervention in the case with a request to annul the bidding process, which would cause even more embarrassment and difficulty for the bank.

Even before Folha published the report revealing the leak, the Temer Government had already been confounded by the result due to the fact that Multi Solution had never had a contract with a public entity before and is seen as a rookie without the necessary structure to take on an account like the Bank of Brazil.

On Tuesday, the result of another bidding process for advertising agencies was announced, this time for Secom (The Social Communication Secretary for the Presidency of the Republic), and Multi Solution came in last place.

Translated by LLOYD HARDER

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