Key Highlights
Contents
- President Lula enacted Law No. 15,358/2025, establishing a comprehensive framework to fight unlicensed gambling and criminal organizations
- Brazil’s Central Bank and Finance Ministry now possess authority to instruct financial institutions to freeze accounts associated with illegal betting sites
- Banks and payment processors must participate in fraud detection networks to identify unlawful operators
- Specialized regulations for Pix instant payments will be implemented to stop their exploitation by unauthorized gambling platforms
- Severe penalties including financial sanctions, license revocations, and criminal prosecution target entities collaborating with illegal operators
Brazil has launched a decisive offensive against unlicensed gambling activities through new legislation that authorizes financial oversight bodies to freeze banking accounts and halt transactions connected to illegal operators.
On March 25, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva approved Law No. 15,358/2025, which appeared in the Official Gazette that same date.
This legislative measure carries the formal designation of Legal Framework for Combating Organized Crime, though it’s commonly referred to as the “Raul Jungmann Law.”
The statute specifically addresses fixed-odds gambling enterprises operating outside regulatory approval. It equips Brazil’s Central Bank and Finance Ministry with expanded enforcement capabilities to dismantle these operations through financial intervention.
Through the newly introduced Article 21-A, banks, payment service providers, and financial intermediaries face mandatory obligations to freeze accounts belonging to non-compliant operators once regulatory bodies identify them. These institutions must additionally prevent any future transactions that would facilitate illegal gambling activities.
Due process safeguards are embedded within the legislation. Operators facing account freezes retain the right to challenge these actions. Gamblers holding funds with blocked operators maintain entitlement to recovery of their money.
Data Exchange Networks and Instant Payment Controls
Central to this legislation is the establishment of compulsory fraud intelligence-sharing networks. Article 24-A mandates that banking institutions and payment companies participate in interconnected platforms designed to identify individuals and organizations functioning as unlicensed betting operators.
These networks will enable institutions to exchange information, recognize questionable activities, and implement preventive measures including transaction blocking or rejection.
The Secretariat of Prizes and Betting will administer a publicly accessible database listing unauthorized operators for institutional reference.
The legislation also specifically targets Pix, Brazil’s extensively adopted instant payment infrastructure. Article 24-B assigns the Central Bank responsibility for developing dedicated regulations governing Pix usage to prevent exploitation by illegal gambling websites.
Potential interventions include establishing a gambling-exclusive transaction classification connected to a registry of licensed operators. Automatic screening mechanisms utilizing economic activity identifiers and Pix account keys may be deployed to stop irregular transactions.
Visual indicators on transaction records involving betting operators represent another proposed enforcement mechanism. Detection systems for identifying unusual transaction behaviors will become mandatory.
Sanctions and Regulatory Obligations
The legislation establishes fresh administrative violations carrying enhanced sanctions. Organizations maintaining commercial relationships with unlicensed operators risk monetary penalties, operational suspension, or complete license cancellation.
Non-compliance with anti-money laundering regulations falls under these new punitive measures.
Promoting illegal betting operators constitutes a violation under this law. This encompasses digital platforms, social media influencers, and conventional media outlets when demonstrable knowledge exists that the operator lacks proper authorization.
Assets confiscated from frozen accounts will be channeled to the National Public Security Fund following forfeiture proceedings. This mechanism directly links financial enforcement to public safety resource allocation.
The Central Bank and Finance Ministry now bear responsibility for developing the implementing regulations necessary to execute the law’s provisions.
Brazil’s authorized betting sector has experienced significant growth, and this new legislation aims to safeguard licensed operators and consumers from unlawful competition. The law received publication in the Official Gazette on March 25, 2026.
