Brazil’s crackdown on clandestine betting will run through banks, Anatel and digital platforms

Brazil’s new provisional measure does not just ban authorized betting operators and virtual casinos; it also sets up a second front aimed at keeping players from drifting to unlicensed sites. For high-risk PSPs, the important part is that payments, ad distribution, and internet blocking are all being pulled into the enforcement chain.

1. Operators that received authorization to operate in Brazil must make their websites and apps unavailable from 6 October. If platforms keep offering bets after that, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice may request blocking of the electronic addresses, with Anatel responsible for forwarding those orders to internet connection providers.
2. For domains ending in .br, the measure also assigns a role to the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (Comitê Gestor da Internet no Brasil). The government says the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets, under the Ministry of Finance, already has a structure in place to identify irregular platforms and speed up blocking requests.
3. The payment side is where PSPs should pay attention. The measure bans banks, payment institutions and participants in arrangements such as Pix from enabling transactions destined for betting. At the same time, it preserves the payments needed to wind down companies and return bettors’ balances.
4. The Central Bank is supposed to define the rules for financial institutions and create an information-sharing system that will allow transactions linked to illegal betting to be rejected and funds to be returned. The text does not set a deadline for that mechanism, and it does not spell out how the payments will be identified.
5. Advertising is the third enforcement lane. The ban covers ads, sponsorships and content promoting betting to the Brazilian public, including digital channels. Material already in circulation must be removed within 10 days of the provisional measure’s publication, with that deadline set for 5 October. Consumer protection bodies may investigate violations and order the suspension of ads.

Digital platforms also get their own obligations: they must take measures to stop betting content from circulating, even when it is posted by third parties, while app stores must block prohibited services and remove them after notice. If they do not comply, the measure says the companies may face consequences, though the text shown here cuts off before listing them.