Latin America's largest engineering company Odebracht, which is being investigated over the Petrobras scandal, was loaned at least $190m (£153.0m/€170.0m) by Brazilian state-controlled lender Caixa Econômica Federal to complete the Arena Corinthians football stadium, according to newspaper Folha de S.Paulo.
The newspaper said Odebrecht turned to Caixa after delays to planned loans from state development bank BNDES left a huge funding gap.
Caixa agreed to purchase Odebrecht local bonds to help plug the funding deficit, with former Odebrecht chief executive Marcelo Bahia Odebrecht – jailed for 19 years last month for paying more than $30m in bribes – personally involved in the negotiations, according to the report.
Prosecutors say there is evidence of bribes paid on soccer stadiums built to host the 2014 World Cup, and in particular the Arena Corinthians stadium.
The 49,000-seat Sao Paulo venue, home to Corinthians FC, hosted six matches during the 2014 Fifa World Cup, including the opening match between Brazil and Croatia.
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