For some years now, the CVM (Brazilian securities and exchange commission) has been nursing an intention to make the information disclosed to investors more palatable. This wish may become a reality soon, with the adoption of “plain Portuguese” in the periodical information provided by companies, especially their financial statements.

“Among the themes considered during the revision process for Instruction 202 – which handles registration of public companies – is the possibility of including a requirement of plain Portuguese in the documents prescribed by the rule”, tells Osmar Costa Junior, the autarchy’s company tracking manager.

The non-specialized investor – whose participation in the capital market increases year after year – is the main target of the possible change. “The financial market has its own jargon, which in some situations makes it difficult for investors, especially those not accustomed to the market’s day-to-day life, to understand concepts and ideas”, says CVM through its press relations department.

The autarchy stresses, however, that the simplification in language will have limits, to avoid the risk of imprecise communication. They understand that it is the investor’s responsibility to understand the basic concepts of the financial universe, such as “interest rates” and “stocks”, for instance.

The movement mirrors itself on an American initiative. In 1998, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released A Plain English Handbook to advise companies about the use of plain English in their documents. The handbook is 77 pages long and full of tips – such as using simple words and short sentences, written in direct order, and eliminating jargon and “legalese”.