“As long as we remain “As long as we remain focused on our clients and focused on our clients and continue to have our continue to have our employees as our main asset, employees as our main asset, we will be unstoppable.” we will be unstoppable.”
Guilherme Mazie CFO
CFO
Metamorphosis
Many of my partners began their letters by saying they were surprised and honoured to have
been asked to write it. I am, without a doubt, very honoured Surprised? Not so much I’ll explain: I have been wondering for quite a while when it would be my turn to write For better or worse, I’ve always been a reserved person, I don’t usually speak much or open up That is why, believing this would be a good opportunity for you to get to know me a little better, I have chosen to dedicate this
letter to telling you a bit of my story, rather than addressing another topic or reflecting on a specific one There could hardly be a better time in my career to talk about it. In July 2025, I will have spent 13 years as an employee and 12 years as a partner at SPX However, this April, I’ll have completed 16 years of S, P and X (and L!)
My professional life began in April 2009 at Banco BBM, where I started as an intern in the quantitative models research department, focused on developing a
default probability calculation model, on which our partner Gabriel Hartung also worked. In fact, it was Gabriel who taught me how to use VLOOKUP, who knew? Nonetheless, in the post-crisis turmoil of 2008, I was placed in a somewhat random position in the office No one from my department sat near me, and I was surrounded by operators. At the time, there was no physical distinction between Banco BBM and BBM Investimentos, so I experienced moments that would be unimaginable today – I was a Quant trainee watching Bruno (Pandolfi) negotiate dollars two seats away from me Since then, the seed of a life as an operator had been planted in me.
I come from a family of doctors mother, father, grandparents, uncles, siblings literally all of them. My parents separated and, believe it or not, each remarried a doctor Even so, I was never interested in Medicine, I always tended towards Exact Sciences. I was divided between Engineering and Economics, given my interest in numbers. And, although I never spoke to Bruno’s father, I was given exactly the same advice he gave his son: ‘Go for Engineering. An engineer can do a postgraduate degree in Economics; now, an economist is unlikely to do a postgraduate degree in Engineering.’ I took his advice, but it wasn’t very useful – I never practised engineering and I fell in love with finance right from the beginning.
However, the choice in education played an important role in my first contact with SPX. When it was founded and the Commodities
desk established, I received an email from Bruno Mafra, via PUC-Rio, which was sent to the Centraliens, former students of the Écoles Centrales in France, with whom the college had a double-diploma program Although approved for the École Centrale Paris, a problem with the documentation sent by the university resulted in me losing the Eiffel scholarship. Without it, I wouldn’t have been able to stay in France But nothing happens by chance. If I had been there, I wouldn’t have ended up at BBM. So, even though I wasn’t an official Centralien, I received that email and decided to have a conversation The position was for a Commodities analyst, something I had never considered (my dream had always been to work in Equities) After a few conversations, I was accepted and, when I went to inform BBM of my decision, either coincidentally or on merit, a position opened up on the Equities desk. And so began my 10-year career alongside Leo (Linhares), to whom I owe much of my professional success.
I worked with him and Nicolas (Poletti), managing BBM’s long-only funds for a year and a half, until the day I received the news that they were leaving the Bank. I was very upset about the situation, because I felt like I was part of a dream team Everything I had learned about stocks and portfolio management had come from them, from theory to practice, including day-to-day routines (I still remember the day I started waking up at 5 00am because one day, while using my charger for his Blackberry, I saw on the screen that Leo’s alarm was set for 5 15am)
At first, I was at a loss as to what to do. There were conversations about the position that would open up for me with their departure, but I was never fully convinced In the weeks that followed, I continued to get on with my life, but I was never able to completely let go of the idea of rejoining those two. I even remember that, when they decided to join SPX, a split was made from BBM Fermat, a long-biased prototype that we had. So, while management wasn’t officially transferred, I made the first trades on Falcon, still at BBM. As I said before, nothing is by chance...
I’ve never been one for waiting for things to happen. Anxious or persistent, I was always in their ear about my interest in following them. They would laugh in response, saying that they didn’t even have a place to sit or didn’t know exactly what they were going to do, not to mention the non-solicitation agreement At one point, I asked Nicolas: ‘What if I quit, can we talk?’ ‘Well, I think so, that’s up to you, but I can’t promise you anything ’ That was more than enough for me. Like several other partners who blindly committed to SPX in its early days, I resigned on the spot, and shortly afterwards I was working with both of them in a small meeting room on the sixth floor of Rua Humaitá 275, without knowing how much I was earning, what my salary package was or even what my job description was
That was the start of my career in Brazilian stock management at SPX, which lasted until 2020. This was followed by three years of international stock management until
fate decided to put me up against Mafra again Who knows how he managed to handle so many departments so effectively for so long, but as the company grew, the need for someone totally dedicated to the group’s finances became obvious. It was then that I had the honour of being invited by Bruno Marangoni to transfer from management to administration, going through a transition period that would eventually culminate in me becoming Finance and Partnership Director. My background in Equities and Corporate Finance seemed to have been the main reason for this choice However, after a few conversations, I realized that the trust that many people placed in me after 12 years with the company was even more important. This deeply renewed my professional motivation Some setbacks in my career had triggered feelings of Impostor Syndrome. I began to wonder: did I truly belong among so many highly qualified individuals?
“Resilience is the ability of a person or system to adapt and recover in the face of adversity, challenges, and change This ability is not limited to passive resistance, but involves active and transformative action in difficult situations ”
Tiago Fernandes, Letter to the Team, November 2024
I conclude this text proud of my 16 years at the group and everything we have achieved together. Even with the current crisis in the asset management sector in Brazil, we remain strong, and I have no doubt that,
as long as we remain focused on our clients and continue to have our employees as our main asset, we will be unstoppable.
To the younger people here who are taking the time to read about my life (it’s strange to talk about ‘younger people’ at 37, but I started this story when I was 21), I am totally available to help you with any aspect of your careers And if you’ll allow me, two recommendations that I received and carry with me for life:
2.
“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.” Steve Jobs
1. And more importantly, never stop being hungry for knowledge At nearly 40, I have stepped out of my comfort zone and am currently completing the Chief Financial Officer Program at Columbia Business School. It’s never too late to reinvent yourself
Thank you for dedicating a few minutes of your day to me
by IR
Leonardo Linhares, Member of the Board of Directors and Head of Equities at SPX, took part in the second edition of the Itau BBA Investment Strategy Day, held on the 13 of March. The event brought together specialists from renowned asset management companies to discuss the stock market outlook in Brazil and abroad. th
During his participation, Leonardo shared his vision of the trends and challenges for the Brazilian and international stock markets, contributing with strategic insights alongside other experts in the sector.
by IR
Marcelo Carletti, Director of Real Estate at SPX Capital, took part in the 7 Brazilian Congress on RPPS Investments, promoted by ABIPEM NACIONAL, and the 14 Assimpasc State Congress, in Florianópolis/SC. th th
The event brought together experts to debate the main trends and opportunities for the RPPS, as well as providing an environment for exchange and networking among professionals in the sector.
by HR
In March, we held two editions of Meeting with the Partners, promoting two breakfasts attended by six employees at each meeting. In Rio de Janeiro, Marcelo Castro was the host, while in São Paulo, Katherine Albuquerque took on that role
These occasions are great opportunities to promote integration among team members and share enriching experiences.
by HR
We welcomed Econdata group students, from PUC, to our Rio de Janeiro office, as part of our initiative to strengthen our employer brand. The visit was led by Pedro Freire and Samylly Zanini of the Investor Relations Department, Gustavo Rabello of the Currency Department, and Bruna Silveira of the Equities Department.
Aside from providing students with a more detailed understanding of SPX, these meetings also offer great opportunities to answer questions relating to the labour market and explore career options
by HR
In March, the London office team had the opportunity to visit the exhibition Brasil! Brasil! The Birth of Modernism,’ at the Royal Academy of Arts.
The exhibition, which brought together more than 130 works by ten influential Brazilian artists of the 20 century, celebrated the richness and diversity of modern Brazilian art, reflecting the country’s intense cultural and historical transformations th
It was an enriching experience that provided a moment of inspiration and connection with Brazilian culture in one of London’s most prestigious art venues.
by IR
Our credit fund, SPX Seahawk, was recognized as an Excellent Performer in the Best Institutional Funds ranking by Investidor Institucional magazine, in the Free Fixed Income category SPX Seahawk is a Long Only private credit fund focused on high-grade assets. You can view the full ranking in the March 2025 issue via this link
2.
On International Women’s Day (March 8), we celebrated the achievements and the vital role of women across all spaces especially within the corporate environment To mark the occasion, we hosted an insightful conversation about the challenges and accomplishments of women in the workplace. Moderated by Luciana Seabra (CEO and Head of Research at Indê Investimentos),
the discussion featured Maria Gurgel (founder of the Projeto Resguarde – Criança que Poupa), Marcella Libardoni (Head of Local Interest Rates at SPX), Bruna Silveira (Head of Equity Research at SPX), and Marcela Novaes (Investor Relations at SPX)
The episode is now available on our YouTube channel.
3.
Our team participated in the first edition of Conexão Bradesco, an event hosted by Bradesco, which provided a dynamic space to engage with the bank’s distribution team and strengthen partnerships
We thank Bradesco for the warm welcome and all participants for contributing to a successful event.
SPXS11 Real Estate Investment Fund (FII) distributed dividends of R$0.091/share for February 2025 (Dividend Yield: 1 10% monthly or 14.20% annually, based on the closing price of February 28) As highlighted in the latest Management Report, the credit portfolio maintained full compliance, reflecting the portfolio's strength, timely operations, and reduced leverage further reinforcing its overall resilience
Click here to read the full report Click here to read the full report.
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