INVESTORS DREAM OF LOW PRICES AND CLEAR SCENARIOS, BUT THIS “CLEAR SKY” WILL NEVER HAPPEN, SAYS WALTER MACIEL, CEO OF AZ QUEST

FOR MANY INVESTORS, THE IDEAL CONDITIONS FOR ALLOCATION ARE LOW PRICES, VISIBILITY, AND PREDICTABILITY. HOWEVER, ACCORDING TO WALTER MACIEL, CEO OF AZ QUEST, THIS “CLEAR SKY” DREAM FOR INVESTING IS UNREALISTIC.

“PRICES ARE LOW ONLY BECAUSE THE SCENARIO IS CLOUDY. IF THE SCENARIO WERE CLEAR AND GOOD, PRICES WOULD BE MUCH HIGHER,” MACIEL SAID IN AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH INFOMONEY.

THE CEO HIGHLIGHTS TWO POSSIBLE OUTCOMES FOR THE POLITICAL SCENARIO IN THE COMING YEARS: RESOLUTION “BY THE DOVE OR BY THE SWORD.” IN THE “PEACEFUL” SCENARIO, A NEW GOVERNMENT COORDINATED WITH THE CENTRÃO AND CONGRESS, WITH A FISCAL PLAN, COULD BRING STABILITY. “IT’S EITHER THIS, OR THEY WILL ENFORCE FISCAL DOMINANCE, 40% INTEREST RATES, AND IT WILL LEAD TO IMPEACHMENT. BECAUSE ONCE MANDATORY EXPENSES EXCEED REVENUE, THERE’S NO WAY AROUND IT, IT WILL BE A MEGA CRISIS,” HE STATES..

ACCORDING TO THE MANAGER, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE CURRENT MOMENT: “IF THERE IS ONE THING I AM CONFIDENT ABOUT, IT’S THAT NEXT YEAR WILL BE THE YEAR OF TURNAROUND.”

MACIEL RECALLS AZ QUEST’S EXPERIENCE SINCE 2006, HIGHLIGHTING CRISES LIKE 2008, WHICH PROVIDED VALUABLE LESSONS FOR MARKET PROFESSIONALS: PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION, REDUCING DEPENDENCE ON INDIVIDUAL CLIENTS AND MANAGERS, AND FOCUSING ON LONG-TERM BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY.

TODAY, AZ QUEST MANAGES APPROXIMATELY R$40 BILLION, WITH MORE THAN 150 PRODUCTS ACROSS 18 STRATEGIES, INCLUDING INFRASTRUCTURE, REAL ESTATE, AND AGRIBUSINESS FUNDS, TARGETING BOTH B2B AND B2C CLIENTS.

FOR MACIEL, INVESTORS NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT NOTHING IN BRAZIL IS PREDICTABLE. “INVESTORS HAVE A DREAM. THE PROBLEM IS THAT THIS DREAM WILL NEVER COME TRUE. THEY WANT LOW PRICES WITH VISIBILITY AND A CLEAR SCENARIO. PRICES ARE LOW ONLY BECAUSE THE SCENARIO IS CLOUDY. IF THE SCENARIO WERE CLEAR AND GOOD, PRICES WOULD BE MUCH HIGHER,” HE EMPHASIZES.

THE CEO BELIEVES THAT A POTENTIAL POWER SHIFT IN 2026 COULD IMPROVE THE FISCAL SCENARIO, BOOSTING RISK ASSETS SUCH AS THE STOCK MARKET, INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDS, AND LONG-TERM BONDS.