Fintech & payments regulation in Brazil (2026)

BCB Resolution No. 561 bars authorized eFX providers from using stablecoins or other cryptoassets to settle overseas remittances (effective Oct 1, 2026), requiring FX transactions or non-resident real accounts instead. It closes the dominant USDT/USDC back-end rail for Brazilian cross-border flows over AML, tax and monetary-policy concerns.

The Central Bank published three resolutions defining virtual asset service providers, setting authorization and operational requirements, and folding certain crypto activities into the FX regime. Existing operators must apply for authorization between Feb 2 and Oct 29, 2026.

Amending Resolution 80/2021, the rule requires every payment institution to be authorized by the BCB before operating, regardless of transaction volume, with a regularization window of May 1-31, 2026 (and until Mar 31, 2029 for smaller e-money issuers). It ends the prior threshold-based exemption that left many fintechs unsupervised.

The Central Bank launched Pix Automático, enabling one-time-authorized recurring payments for subscriptions and bills. It targets ~60 million Brazilians without credit cards and competes directly with card autopay and bank direct-debit at far lower cost.

Brazil's first crypto statute set guidelines for virtual asset services and VASPs and added them to AML/KYC obligations; a 2023 decree designated the Central Bank as regulator and supervisor. It established the legal basis for licensing crypto firms.

The Central Bank consolidated the rules for incorporating and operating payment institutions, setting proportional minimum-capital tiers (R$1M-R$3M by category) and governance requirements. It remains the core licensing framework for payment fintechs.

Following Joint Resolution BCB/CMN No. 1/2020, the Central Bank launched Open Finance in phases through 2021 (product data, customer/transaction data, payment initiation, then FX/investments/insurance). It created a mandatory data-sharing ecosystem to boost competition and inclusion.

Subsequent CMN rules consolidated the SCD/SEP regime, keeping the R$1M minimum capital and corporate-form requirements as the credit-fintech market expanded to 100+ licensed SCDs. It refined the framework first set in 2018.

The Central Bank's free, 24/7 instant-payment system Pix went into full operation, enabling P2P, P2B and B2G transfers via keys (CPF, email, phone, random). It became the country's dominant payment rail within a year and reshaped competition.

The Central Bank created two new financial-institution categories: Direct Credit Companies (SCD, lending own capital) and Peer-to-Peer Lending Companies (SEP), operating exclusively via electronic platforms. It allowed credit fintechs to lend without partnering with a bank.

Resolution CMN 4.282 plus BCB Circulars 3.680-3.683 set the authorization and oversight process for payment arrangements and payment institutions, risk management and payment accounts. They operationalized the 2013 law and created the BCB's supervisory toolkit.

The foundational law defined payment arrangements and payment institutions and placed them under Central Bank regulation and supervision (under CMN guidelines). It created the legal basis on which all later fintech and payments licensing in Brazil is built.