Blue3 Investimentos made a decision earlier this year: to take one step back before taking two steps forward. The investment advisory firm, with 15 offices and approximately R$ 28 billion under custody, decided to focus on its growth and diversification of its revenue streams instead of becoming a brokerage firm.
What made Blue3 revise its plans was the instruction from the Securities and Exchange Commission that allowed the entry of capitalist partners into investment advisory firms. With this, the transformation into a "light" brokerage firm was no longer so urgent because it would bring a higher tax burden and more bureaucracy, factors that would affect growth – Blue3's goal is to reach R$ 100 billion by the end of 2027.
“XP became our partner, and we prefer to remain as an independent investment agent. We will use this decision to remain leaner to grow faster and consolidate the market,” says Wagner Vieira, founding partner and CEO of Blue3 Investimentos, to Wealth Point , a NeoFeed program.
Based on this definition, Blue3 accelerated the expansion process of its other business verticals and created new ones. The most recent was its entry into the debt capital market (DCM) area, with the acquisition of the capital markets advisory firm M Capital Investimentos. And the creation of a Registered Independent Advisor (RIA) structure in the US, where it already has R$ 2 billion under custody.
“We needed to regularize our offshore situation to provide the same advisory services we offer here abroad, and we’ve reached the size to do so. This is important for our proactive and educational role in demonstrating the importance of dollarizing a portion of one’s assets,” says Vieira.
Another vertical that has been standing out is the family office, with Troon Capital , in addition to the areas of foreign exchange, insurance, corporate banking, and wealth planning. This has led to a diversification of revenue in the business. Previously, 100% came from XP's investment platform. Today, that share has fallen to about 60%.
“It’s impossible to live off just one revenue stream. We needed to diversify in order to strengthen ourselves as an institution. In a difficult market environment like this, with high interest rates, investments suffer greatly, and it’s important to have other avenues to sustain the business . In addition to being able to serve the client more comprehensively,” says the CEO of Blue3.
But few competitors considered this diversification strategy. Therefore, Blue3's assessment is that the advisory market will undergo significant consolidation in the coming years. Those who haven't diversified are finding it more difficult to profit, especially since those operating in other areas are accessing a deeper pool of resources.
“Investments represent only 1.5% of the total revenue of the financial market, which revolves around R$ 1.1 trillion, encompassing insurance, credit, capital markets, and other areas. There is much more money on the table and opportunities to compete in the market. We will pursue this by bringing a more assertive and client-focused approach, as we did with investments,” says Vieira.
