Brazil expands crackdown on illegal betting, putting influencers, brands, and payment firms in the frame

Brazil’s federal government has widened its fight against unlicensed betting operators with Portaria MF nº 1.766/2026, published in the Diário Oficial da União on Thursday (18). The part that matters for PSPs: financial and payment institutions can now be held liable if they keep processing transactions for non-licensed platforms after formal notice from the Ministry of Finance.

1. The new rule also creates tax liability for digital influencers and brands that promote operators without authorization to operate in Brazil. That is a cleaner way of saying the state wants to go after both demand generation and the money flow, not just the bookmaker itself.
2. The measure is aimed at making illegal bets harder to run by squeezing their advertising channels and payment rails. In practice, that puts pressure on the two things unlicensed operators need most: visibility and a working checkout.
3. Plínio Lemos Jorge, president of the Associação Nacional de Jogos e Loterias (ANJL), said the initiative marks another step in protecting the regulated market and reinforces the SPA-MF’s commitment to fighting the illegal market with efficient regulation. He described illegal betting as a permanent challenge, saying the clandestine industry uses high levels of technological sophistication and adapts quickly.
4. Jorge also said the new regulation reduces the competitive advantages of irregular operators and strengthens consumer protection for users of platforms authorized by the federal government. For licensed PSPs and acquirers, that is the usual regulatory logic: make compliance easier to defend than non-compliance.
5. The sector expects the measure to increase tax collection and improve legal certainty for companies and consumers. The immediate operational signal for payment providers is straightforward: once the Ministry of Finance has issued formal notice, continued processing for non-licensed betting sites becomes a regulatory exposure, not just a commercial decision.