Flávio Bolsonaro is stepping into São Paulo’s money blocks like a rookie drummer joining a band mid-song.
He smiles, trades cards, and says the beat will stay steady.
In recent weeks the senator has met bank chiefs, fund heads, and shop owners to ease market nerves.
He has shown up on finance podcasts and closed-door lunches, pitching himself for Brazil’s 2026 race.
Yet traders say they hear a slogan, not a map.
Flávio calls himself “pro-market,” but a full plan is not due until early next year.
That blank space fuels doubt while his father, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro, serves a long jail term for a coup case.
Some money managers had hoped for São Paulo governor Tarcísio de Freitas, seen as a steadier hand.
When Jair backed his son, stocks dipped and talk on trading floors turned sharp.
Flávio then tried to borrow weight by praising Paulo Guedes and ex central bank chief Roberto Campos Neto.
So far, neither has joined his team, and aides say key posts are open.
Critics also point to his own mixed signals.
Days ago he hinted he might quit if the “price” was right, then he took it back.
Markets want basics: a spending cap, fair tax rules, and respect for the central bank.
Polls still show President Lula ahead in many matchups.
He also plans trips abroad, including the United States, to meet backers and hear ideas.
But rivals say markets wait for proof, not charm.
For now Flávio is building a bridge over doubt, plank by plank, hoping voters and money cross.