TLDR
- Brazil’s President Lula signed Law No. 15,358/2025, creating a legal framework to combat illegal betting and organized crime
- The Central Bank and Ministério da Fazenda can now order banks to block accounts tied to unauthorized betting operators
- Financial institutions must join fraud information-sharing systems to flag illegal operators
- New rules will regulate Pix transactions to prevent their use by illegal betting platforms
- Fines, license suspensions, and criminal penalties await entities that work with unauthorized operators
Brazil has taken a direct step against illegal betting with the signing of a new law that gives financial regulators the power to block bank accounts and transactions tied to unauthorized operators.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sanctioned Law No. 15,358/2025 on March 25. The law was published in the Official Gazette the same day.
The legislation is officially called the Legal Framework for Combating Organized Crime. It is also known as the “Raul Jungmann Law.”
The law targets fixed-odds betting operations that run without government authorization. It gives Brazil’s Central Bank and the Ministério da Fazenda new enforcement tools to shut down these operations at the financial level.
Under the new Article 21-A, financial institutions, payment providers, and intermediaries are required to block accounts held by irregular operators once identified by regulators. They must also stop any new transactions that would support illegal betting activity.
The law includes protections for due process. Operators whose accounts are blocked have the right to contest the decision. Bettors who are owed money by blocked operators are also entitled to reimbursement.
Fraud Sharing Systems and Pix Regulations
A key part of the law is the creation of mandatory fraud information-sharing systems. Under Article 24-A, banks and payment companies must join interoperable platforms designed to flag individuals and entities operating as unauthorized betting operators.
These systems will allow institutions to share data, detect suspicious activity, and take preventive action such as blocking or refusing transactions.
The Secretariat of Prizes and Betting will maintain a public database of unauthorized operators that institutions can consult.
The law also addresses Pix, Brazil’s widely used instant payment system. Under Article 24-B, the Central Bank will create specific rules for Pix to prevent misuse by illegal betting platforms.
Possible measures include a betting-specific transaction category linked to a registry of authorized operators. Automated filters based on economic activity codes and Pix keys may also be used to block irregular transactions.
Visual markers on transaction statements involving betting operators are another proposed tool. Systems to detect suspicious transaction patterns will also be required.
Penalties and Compliance Requirements
The law introduces new administrative infractions with increased penalties. Entities that maintain business relationships with unauthorized operators face fines, suspension, or revocation of their licenses.
Failure to comply with anti-money laundering rules is also covered under the new penalties.
Advertising for illegal betting operators is treated as an infraction under the law. This applies to digital media, influencers, and traditional media when there is clear awareness that the operator is unauthorized.
Funds seized from blocked accounts will be directed to the National Public Security Fund after being declared forfeited. This ties the financial enforcement directly to public safety funding.
The Central Bank and Ministério da Fazenda are now responsible for drafting the operational regulations needed to implement the law’s provisions.
Brazil’s regulated betting market has been expanding, and the new law is aimed at protecting licensed operators and consumers from illegal competition. The legislation was published in the Official Gazette on March 25, 2026.
