Brazil's Central Bank Bans Crypto Settlement on Regulated Cross-Border Payment Rails

Brazil has steadily brought digital-asset firms under Banco Central do Brasil oversight since its virtual-assets law was enacted in 2022. Rules effective Feb. 2, 2026, placed cross-border crypto activity within the country’s foreign-exchange framework and subjected service providers to licensing, reporting and anti-money-laundering controls. The latest measure seeks to give exchanges more time to detect fraud before assets leave Brazil’s regulated market, though it adds friction to transfers valued for near-instant settlement.

Banco Central do Brasil published the rule on Aug. 7, 2026, requiring virtual-asset service providers from Jan. 1, 2027, to hold qualifying transfers for as long as 24 hours. It covers transfers to overseas platforms or self-custody wallets worth at least $10,000 in one transaction or in a client’s aggregate daily activity; providers may release funds earlier after completing risk checks. ABToken warned that the requirement could raise costs for legitimate users and weaken domestic exchanges against offshore competitors that are not subject to the same delay.