Brazil's Central Bank blocks boleto betting transactions

Banco Central do Brasil published BCB Resolution No. 596 on 30 September, amending the boleto payment rules to prohibit transactions intended for fixed-odds betting lotteries.

The resolution changes BCB Resolution No. 443, dated 12 December 2024, which governs the boleto payment arrangement. It inserts Article 16-A and applies to institutions participating in that arrangement.

A restriction tied to the provisional measure

Those institutions must prevent the processing, settlement and enabling of transactions intended for fixed-odds betting lotteries. The requirement applies from the publication date of Provisional Measure No. 1,394, 25 September 2026, while Resolution No. 596 itself enters into force on its publication date.

The underlying statutory path runs through Article 14 of Provisional Measure No. 1,394. Resolution No. 596 identifies that provision as the basis for the payment restriction, rather than creating a separate prohibition covering every payment method used in betting.

The operative text is limited to the boleto arrangement. It does not say that institutions must block betting payments made through other rails or establish a general prohibition on all transactions involving betting operators. The source also does not specify a separate technical deadline, reporting form or transition period for participating institutions.

The Central Bank’s Collegiate Board adopted the amendment at a session held on 30 September. The resolution cites Articles 9 and 11, item VI, of Lei nº 4.595/1964, Article 10 of Lei nº 10.214/2001 and Article 9 of Lei nº 12.865/2013, alongside related National Monetary Council and BCB rules.

What the record leaves open

The act functions as an implementation measure within the BCB normative arc. Its legal text assigns the payment obligation to participating institutions and ties its start date to the earlier provisional measure. It does not resolve the wider legal status or later legislative treatment of that measure.

For payment providers, the immediate control question is whether boleto processing, settlement and enabling functions can identify and stop transactions destined for the covered lotteries. The record does not describe the technical criteria institutions must use, how disputed transactions will be handled or whether the BCB will publish further operational guidance.

Resolution No. 596 was signed by Gilneu Francisco Astolfi Vivan, the BCB director responsible for organization of the financial system and resolution. It is not revoked or cancelled in the official record.

No separate implementation event or challenge is identified in the supplied material. The official BCB record is the next source to monitor for any operational guidance or subsequent change to the resolution.