Bets group that moved R$ 5 billion is targeted in raids across 3 Brazilian states

Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service and the Federal Prosecutor’s Office say they are investigating a sports betting group that allegedly moved more than R$ 5 billion in 2025 alone. For PSPs, acquirers, and banks, the interesting part is not the headline number; it’s the alleged mix of offshore structuring, shell companies, and account pooling that can turn a betting flow into a tax and AML problem very fast.

1. Six search-and-seizure warrants were executed in João Pessoa (PB), Recife (PE), and São Paulo (SP). The case is being handled by the MPF’s Gaeco (Grupo de Atuação Especial de Combate ao Crime Organizado), and the authorities said only search warrants were being carried out at this stage.
2. According to the Receita Federal and the MPF, the investigation focuses on a business group behind a sports betting platform that “would have moved more than R$ 5 billion only in 2025.” The authorities have not officially disclosed the company’s name or the targets of the warrants as of the latest update.
3. Investigators suspect the group set up a shell company in Curaçao, a Caribbean island, to make it look as if the platform’s operations were based outside Brazil before the sector was regulated. They also suspect Brazilian companies linked to the group were the ones actually operating in the country.
4. The probe also looks at alleged transfers of funds abroad followed by the return of part of that money to Brazil through payments for services. According to investigators, that structure could have been used to justify the entry of funds previously sent out of the country. The authorities also cite possible use of contas bolsão (pooled accounts), which combine funds from multiple clients in a single account and can make it harder to trace money and identify the ultimate beneficiaries.
5. The Receita Federal opened 11 tax procedures to deepen the investigation. Potential tax recovery is estimated at about R$ 300 million. The inquiry also asks whether structures used before regulation were adapted to keep enabling tax evasion after the new betting rules came into force.

The operation is the second major joint action by the Receita Federal and the MPF targeting the sports betting market in August. On August 13, Operação Arena executed 17 search-and-seizure warrants in five states and included a court order to seize assets and funds of up to R$ 1 billion.