Brazil Closes 323 Accounts in Illegal Betting Crackdown

Banks and payment companies in Brazil shut 323 accounts during the first quarter of 2026 over suspected links to illegal betting. Pix transactions and accounts used outside their stated business purpose were among the signals that triggered scrutiny.

Brazilian financial institutions are increasingly looking at where gambling money moves, not only at the websites taking bets. During the first three months of 2026, 323 bank and payment accounts were closed after being linked to suspected illegal gambling activity. The total included accounts held by individuals as well as businesses. The cases covered both suspected operators and accounts believed to be used by intermediaries.

Pay4Fun obtained the figures from the Ministry of Finance under Brazil’s freedom-of-information law. O Globo first reported the data. The monthly numbers rose quickly. There were 65 closures in January, 127 in February and 131 in March.

Thousands of Pix Transfers Raise Flags

The activity behind some of the accounts did not match what their owners had declared to banks.

One warning sign was a large number of Pix transfers made within a short period. In some cases, accounts received payments from thousands of people before money was sent out again to individuals.

Third-party accounts were also used. These could serve as an extra layer between a betting business and its customers.

Companies attracted attention for similar reasons. Some were officially registered for retail or service activities but showed transaction patterns more typical of payment handling. Large numbers of incoming transfers and repeated payouts made the mismatch easier to spot.

That gives banks something concrete to work with. They do not need to identify an illegal gambling website first if the movement of money already looks inconsistent with the account holder’s stated activity.

March Closures Reach 131

March had 131 account closures, the highest monthly figure in Q1 and just over twice January’s 65. Banks acted on accounts where payment activity did not match the business or purpose declared by their owners.

The data does not show how many illegal operators were affected. But once an account is closed, the same business needs another route to collect deposits and pay customers.