MST ON THE STOCK EXCHANGE? Analysis of the public issuance of an Agribusiness Receivables Certificate - CRA to finance cooperatives in Agrarian Reform.
Certificate of Receivables from Agribusiness; Family Farming; Agrarian Reform; MST; Collective Subject of Rights; Agricultural Policy; Capital Market.
In In the second half of 2021, seven agricultural cooperatives formed by family farmers linked to the Landless Rural Workers' Movement (MST), based in Agrarian Reform settlements, raised R$17,500,000.00 in the capital market through the issuance of Agribusiness Receivables Certificates (CRA) on the Brazilian Stock Exchange (B3). The operation, unprecedented among landless farmer cooperatives, had open participation to the public with investments starting at R$100.00 and a fixed rate of 5.5% per year, directly benefiting thousands of family farmers. This paper seeks to describe and analyze this experience from the theoretical perspective of the Law Found on the Street, discussing how the “re-signification” of this traditional financing tool for agribusiness promotes the (re)creation of rights, allowing the implementation of the constitutional mandates of the Agricultural Policy (art. 187) and the Economic and Financial Order (art. 170) of the Federal Constitution of 1988.
The research is developed in three chapters. The first addresses the historical challenges of the agrarian issue in Brazil, with an emphasis on the trajectory of the social and economic struggle of the MST, from the fight for land, access to public policies, and access to markets. The second presents the regulatory frameworks for agricultural credit in the country and the Brazilian capital market, detailing the financial products aimed at agricultural financing, with a focus on the CRA. The third chapter carries out an empirical analysis of the specific case, highlighting its quantitative and qualitative dimensions, and with a critical eye proposes institutional adjustments to expand access to these financial tools for family farming. The study concludes that, by accessing the capital market, family farmers demonstrate the ability to transform economic and legal structures for the benefit of Agrarian Reform, revealing emancipatory practices aligned with constitutional principles and reinforcing the legitimacy of the participation of social movements in the democratic expansion and economic and social development of the country.