Marcelo Mizrahi

Marcelo Mizrahi asked about the decline in Santander Brasil's payroll-deductible loan portfolio, its composition between INSS and public sectors, and the outlook for this portfolio in 2026, especially with anticipated interest rate drops.

Answer

CEO Mario Roberto Opice Leão explained that the decline is due to disciplined capital allocation, as regulatory changes (e.g., INSS ceilings) have made marginal credit profitability for these products unattractive, and cross-selling opportunities are low. He noted that while the bank is knowledgeable about the product, the new platform requires testing, leading to a more gradual expansion. CFO Gustavo Alejo Viviani emphasized that product targets are secondary to segment profitability objectives, with payroll loans being a means to achieve overall segment profitability.

Marcelo Mizrahi asked about the decline in Santander's payroll-deductible loans portfolio, its composition between INSS and public sectors, and the outlook for growth in 2026 given expected interest rate drops.

Answer

CEO Mario Roberto Opice Leão explained that the decline is due to disciplined capital allocation, prioritizing transactional credit products with higher cross-selling potential. He noted that regulatory ceilings (INSS) and cold pricing dynamics have reduced marginal credit profitability for payroll loans, making them less attractive for capital allocation. He indicated that while the public sector side has slightly better cross-selling, it's not enough to warrant significant investment. CFO Gustavo Alejo Viviani emphasized that Santander defines targets by segment profitability, not by product, viewing payroll loans as a means to an end within the overall segment strategy.

Marcelo Mizrahi inquired about the positive expense dynamic, specifically the migration of 1,300 employees to a global platform (SST) and its impact on expenses, asking if it was a cost-neutral migration or if it led to absolute reductions. He also asked about the outlook for provisions, given concerns about corporate cases and the large corporate portfolio, and whether Santander anticipates a significant impact on its cost of risk or a change in credit appetite.

Answer

CEO Mario Leão explained that the employee migration to SST (a global technology unit) is a carve-out, not a dismissal, where former Brazil-only employees now serve multiple countries, reducing per-employee cost for Brazil. This move, part of Brazil's role as a tech source for the group, will lead to an absolute reduction in expenses over time. CFO Gustavo Alejo stated that the bank's credit appetite has not changed, and while known corporate cases are being managed, no new significant concerns are emerging. Adjustments are made in smaller company portfolios (B1), but overall, the bank is pleased with performance management, focusing on both credit performance and profitability without increasing risk. He attributed SME and large corporate portfolio acceleration to market evolution (FGI, Pronamp) and selective exposure to high-performing customers.

Marcelo Mizrahi asked about the positive surprise in expenses, specifically the reduction of 2,000 employees, with 1,300 migrating to the SST global platform. He sought clarification on whether this was a global back-office platform, its impact on expenses, and if further adjustments were expected. He also inquired about provisions, NPL movement, and concerns regarding corporate cases and their potential impact on the cost of risk, given the constant large corporate portfolio growth.

Answer

CEO Mario Leão explained that the employee migration to SST (a global unit for infrastructure, mainframe, cloud, and telecom management) reduces costs for Brazil as these employees now serve multiple geographies. This move contributes to the bank's 'zero nominal expenses' mindset by creating absolute reductions. He noted that the expense agenda involves optimizing service models towards digital and chat-based interactions, reducing the need for physical stores and remote channel headcount. CFO Gustavo Alejo stated that the bank's credit appetite has changed, and while known large corporate cases are being managed, no new significant cases are emerging. He confirmed adjustments in smaller company portfolios (B1) and individuals, but no overall reduction or increase in credit appetite, focusing on consistent client performance and profitability.

Marcelo Mizrahi asked about the impact of business days on revenues, specifically for other retail and platform revenues, and whether a reduction in these lines is expected. He also inquired about XP's investments in AI tools, particularly for advising lower-income clients to increase engagement and revenues, and how AI is being used.

Answer

CFO Victor Mansur explained that business days positively impacted floating and trading days, offsetting negative effects from lower EDTV for equities and shorter fixed income duration, leading to higher 'other retail' revenues. CEO Thiago Maffra detailed XP's extensive AI investments across internal productivity (engineers, management, operations, customer experience), enhancing advisors (relationship, transactional agents), and portfolio allocation. He emphasized that AI is used to enhance advisors, not replace them, freeing them for relationship-focused activities, though fully deployed AI solutions for very small, self-directed clients could grow in the future.

Marcelo Mizrahi asked about the impact of workdays on revenues, particularly for other retail and platform revenues, and whether a reduction in these lines is expected. He also inquired about the company's investments in AI tools, specifically if AI is being used to advise clients, increase engagement, and boost revenues, especially for lower-income clients.

Answer

Victor Mansur explained that business days positively impacted floating and trading, which compensated for lower EDTV and shorter duration in equities and fixed income, leading to higher 'other retail' revenues. Thiago Maffra detailed extensive AI investments across various verticals, including internal productivity (engineers, management, operations, customer experience), enhancing advisors with AI agents for relationship and transactional activities, and improving portfolio allocation. He emphasized that AI is used to increase advisor productivity and free them for relationship focus, not to replace them, though fully deployed AI solutions could serve small, self-directed clients in the future.

Marcelo Mizrahi from Bradesco BBI inquired about the nature of the growth in the corporate credit portfolio and the strategy to address the negative net new money from corporate clients.

Answer

Chief Financial Officer Victor Mansur explained that the credit portfolio growth is from assets originated to be securitized and sold to XP's client base, consistent with past quarters. Regarding negative corporate net new money, he attributed it to a market dynamic where traditional banks are demanding investment reciprocity in exchange for credit lines. Since XP does not focus on this type of lending, it is seeing some corporate cash flow to competitors.

Marcelo Mizahi asked about the insurance business, specifically if the recent decrease in loss ratios for life and credit seguros was recurrent or if they would return to previous levels (e.g., 50%). He also inquired if the insurance line would maintain its pace of growing faster than other lines and continue to add value.

Answer

CFO Alejandro Perez-Reyes explained that a particular effect in the survival business related to a pension plan restatement caused an unusual positive result, and loss ratios should return to more normalized levels. CEO Gianfranco Ferrari clarified that while the current quarter's ratios are exceptional, in the medium to long run, ratios should improve as Credicorp expands into bank assurance and lower-end retail segments. He expressed strong positivity for the insurance business to grow at a high rate in upcoming years due to underpenetration and new product/channel deployment.

Marcelo Mizrahi questioned why credit disbursements were at a record high in the quarter despite a conservative provisioning stance and asked for guidance on the future cost of risk.

Answer

CFO & IRO Mateus Scherer Schwening explained that the high disbursement follows a non-linear growth pattern and came after a flatter Q1. He stated the increased provision was a proactive, cautious decision based on macro signals, not current portfolio health, as NPLs are stable. He reiterated that the cost of risk should normalize to the mid-teens, not the 20% seen in the quarter.

Marcelo Mizrahi asked about the impact of the Easter holiday on Stone's TPV and sales volumes during the first quarter, referencing comments made by other companies in the payments ecosystem.

Answer

Executive Lia de Matos responded that there were no specific trends to highlight regarding an Easter impact on Stone's volumes. She suggested this is likely due to the company's client profile, which has minimal exposure to the large retail sector where such holiday effects are typically more pronounced.

Marcelo Mizrahi of BBI asked about the opportunity for Itaú's investment platform, particularly with the influx of clients from the 'One Itaú' initiative, and the strategy for this segment now that the bank is no longer a shareholder in XP.

Answer

CEO Milton Maluhy Filho explained that 'One Itaú' creates a significant cross-sell opportunity for investments. While the existing 'íon' platform with human specialists serves the affluent segment well, the bank is piloting an AI-powered wealth specialist to provide scalable investment advice to the broader client base. He emphasized that combining Itaú's deep investment expertise with AI technology creates a powerful competitive advantage.

Marco Mizrahi inquired about the sustainability of the current proportion of interest-earning assets within the credit card portfolio, in light of the bank's strategy to increase installment-based lending.

Answer

Executive Alexandre De Oliveira confirmed that the shift towards more installment loans is a deliberate and desired strategy. He described it as a 'win-win' that helps clients manage debt while increasing Inter's interest income. The stated goal is to increase the interest-earning portion of the credit card portfolio from around 20% to a target of 25-26% by launching new products that encourage this behavior.