Brazil has the largest financial system in Latin America. The Banco Central do Brasil authorises banks, payment institutions, brokers, foreign exchange firms and, since February 2026, virtual asset service providers. The Comissão de Valores Mobiliários supervises the securities market. Brazil is known for its instant payment system Pix and a large fintech sector.
Risk flagStandard
FATFNot listed
EU AML high-risk listNot listed
EU tax listNot listed
Licence regimes6
CurrencyBRL
S&P ratingBB
Next election25 October 2026
Brazil is not on the FATF grey or black lists after the 17 to 19 June 2026 plenary. No October 2026 plenary outcome had been published at the check date. It is not on the EU high-risk third country list (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 as last amended by Delegated Regulations (EU) 2026/46 and 2026/83, in force 29 January 2026). It is in neither Annex I nor Annex II of the EU tax list revised by Council conclusions of 9 October 2026. Checked 13 October 2026.
Government and politics
Government
Federal presidential republic
President
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva · since January 2023
President
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Workers' Party (PT))
Governing parties
Workers' Party (PT), leading the Brazil of Hope federation with PCdoB and PV, Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB), party of Vice President Geraldo Alckmin
Last election
General (presidential first round, Congress, governors and state assemblies), 4 October 2026
Next election
Presidential runoff, 25 October 2026. Runoff between Flávio Bolsonaro (PL), 47.03% in the first round, and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), 45.16%. Lula remains head of state and government until the inauguration on 1 January 2027.
Legislature
National Congress: bicameral, Chamber of Deputies (513 seats) and Federal Senate (81 seats). In the October 2026 election PL won the most seats in both chambers (121 deputies; 19 of 54 Senate seats contested).
Legal system
Civil law
Economy and finance
Population
213.4m (2025)
GDP
USD 2.3tn (2025)
GDP per person
USD 10,683 (2025)
Currency
Brazilian real (BRL), floating exchange rate with inflation targeting
Central bank
Banco Central do Brasil
Credit rating
S&P BB (stable) · Moody's Ba1 (stable) · Fitch BB (stable) (as of June 2026)
Latin America's largest economy, built on commodities, agribusiness, oil and a large domestic market. Its banking system is supervised by the Banco Central do Brasil.
Bank
Autorização para funcionamento de banco comercial ou banco múltiplo (authorisation of a commercial or multiple bank)
Minimum capitalUSD 11.2m
TimelineNot published
AuthorityBanco Central do Brasil
Since November 2025 minimum capital depends on the activities a firm carries out, not on its type. The BCB states a range of BRL 56 million to BRL 96 million for banks. The formula has a cost part: BRL 2 million per activity category, plus BRL 5 million (up to BRL 10 million) for technology-intensive services. It has an activity part: BRL 1 million (services), BRL 3 million (custody), BRL 5 million (intermediation) or BRL 7 million (credit) per category, plus BRL 5 million or BRL 8 million for the investment category. The activity part is multiplied by 200% where the firm takes deposits. A firm that uses the word 'banco' in its name adds BRL 30 million (Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025, arts. 8 to 11).
Law
Lei nº 4.595/1964; Resolução CMN nº 4.970/2021 (authorisation processes), arts. 1 to 3; Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025 and Resolução BCB nº 517/2025 (minimum capital)
Passporting
No passporting regime.
Key requirements
Controllers with financial capacity compatible with the capital needed
Lawful origin of the funds used to pay in capital
Economic and financial viability; the BCB may ask for a business plan
IT infrastructure and governance suited to the business and its risks
Unblemished reputation and technical skill of managers and controllers; the BCB may interview them
Foreign participation needs BCB recognition of national interest (Decreto nº 10.029/2019)
Instituição de pagamento, modalidade emissor de moeda eletrônica (payment institution issuing electronic money)
Minimum capitalUSD 1.8m
TimelineNot published
AuthorityBanco Central do Brasil
Activity-based minimum capital under Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025. The BCB states a range of BRL 9.2 million to BRL 32.8 million for payment institutions. Its example for a prepaid account issuer is BRL 12.4 million without Pix and BRL 17.4 million with Pix.
Law
Lei nº 12.865/2013, arts. 6 and 9; Resolução BCB nº 80/2021, arts. 3 and 9 (as amended by Resolução BCB nº 494/2025); Resolução BCB nº 81/2021 (authorisation processes)
Passporting
No passporting regime.
Key requirements
Prior BCB authorisation is required to start any payment service (Resolução BCB nº 80/2021, art. 9, since September 2025)
The application must list every payment modality the firm intends to offer
Same fit and proper, capital origin and viability criteria as other authorised institutions
Unauthorised e-money issuers that began before 1 March 2021 had to apply between 1 and 31 May 2026
Instituição de pagamento: emissor de instrumento de pagamento pós-pago, credenciador or iniciador de transação de pagamento (post-paid issuer, acquirer or payment initiator)
Minimum capitalUSD 1.8m
TimelineNot published
AuthorityBanco Central do Brasil
Activity-based minimum capital under Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025. The BCB states a range of BRL 9.2 million to BRL 32.8 million for payment institutions, depending on the activities carried out.
Law
Lei nº 12.865/2013, art. 9; Resolução BCB nº 80/2021, arts. 3, 9 and 9-A; Resolução BCB nº 81/2021
Passporting
No passporting regime.
Key requirements
Prior BCB authorisation for every payment service; the former volume thresholds were revoked by Resolução BCB nº 494/2025
Post-paid issuers and acquirers active before 5 September 2025 had to apply between 1 and 31 May 2026
A firm that missed that window could continue only for 30 days after it closed
Payment initiators may not hold client funds or store full customer credentials
Sociedade prestadora de serviços de ativos virtuais (virtual asset service provider): intermediária, custodiante or corretora
Minimum capitalUSD 1.6m
TimelineNot published
AuthorityBanco Central do Brasil
Activity-based minimum capital under Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025. Resolução BCB nº 517/2025 places intermediaries and brokers in the intermediation category and custodians and brokers in the custody category. The BCB states a range of BRL 8 million to BRL 37.2 million for brokers and custodians.
Law
Lei nº 14.478/2022, arts. 2, 5 and 9; Decreto nº 11.563/2023; Resolução BCB nº 519/2025 (authorisation); Resolução BCB nº 520/2025 (constitution and operation, as amended by Resolução BCB nº 589/2026), arts. 4 and 88; Resolução BCB nº 521/2025 (foreign exchange)
Passporting
No passporting regime.
Key requirements
Company incorporated in Brazil with head office and management in Brazil (Resolução BCB nº 520/2025, art. 1)
Three modalities: intermediária, custodiante and corretora. Intermediaries and custodians may not combine activities of other modalities (art. 4)
Fit and proper controllers and managers, lawful origin of capital, viable business plan
Exclusive physical head office. Coworking or virtual offices are not accepted (Resolução BCB nº 519/2025, art. 2)
Firms active on 2 February 2026 had to apply within 270 days, by 30 October 2026, or stop within 30 days after that deadline (Resolução BCB nº 520/2025, art. 88)
From 6 November 2026, authorised institutions may not deal with unauthorised virtual asset providers (art. 91, as amended by Resolução BCB nº 589/2026)
Sociedade corretora de títulos e valores mobiliários (CTVM) or sociedade distribuidora de títulos e valores mobiliários (DTVM) (securities broker or distributor)
Minimum capitalUSD 1.6m
TimelineNot published
AuthorityBanco Central do Brasil (authorisation); Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (conduct rules for intermediaries)
Activity-based minimum capital under Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025. Resolução BCB nº 517/2025 places CTVMs and DTVMs in the intermediation and custody categories. The BCB states a range of BRL 8 million to BRL 37.2 million for brokers and custodians.
Law
Lei nº 4.728/1965, art. 9-A; Resolução BCB nº 519/2025 (authorisation); Resolução CVM nº 35/2021 (intermediation of securities transactions)
Passporting
No passporting regime.
Key requirements
Only members of the distribution system may intermediate trades on regulated securities markets (Resolução CVM nº 35/2021, art. 3)
Fit and proper controllers and managers, lawful origin of capital, viable business plan
Exclusive physical head office in Brazil
Only CTVMs and DTVMs may grant financing to buy shares or lend shares (Resolução CVM nº 35/2021, Annex I)
Sociedade corretora de câmbio (foreign exchange broker)
Minimum capitalUSD 1.6m
TimelineNot published
AuthorityBanco Central do Brasil
Activity-based minimum capital under Resolução Conjunta nº 14/2025. Resolução BCB nº 517/2025 places FX brokers in the intermediation category. The BCB states a range of BRL 8 million to BRL 37.2 million for brokers and custodians.
Law
Lei nº 14.286/2021, arts. 3 and 5; Resolução BCB nº 519/2025 (authorisation)
Passporting
No passporting regime.
Key requirements
Foreign exchange operations may be carried out only through institutions the BCB authorises for that market (Lei nº 14.286/2021, art. 3)
The institution must identify its clients and prevent unlawful operations, including money laundering
Fit and proper controllers and managers, lawful origin of capital, viable business plan
Banco Central do Brasil (BCB) · websitebanks, E-money institutions, Payment service providers, Virtual asset service providers (VASPs), Investment firms, FX brokers
Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM) · websiteInvestment firms, Funds
Minimum capital: Resolução Conjunta nº 14 of 3 November 2025 replaced fixed amounts per institution type with an activity-based formula. It applies at once to new applications. Institutions already operating keep their old minimum until 30 June 2026 and then phase in the difference (25% to 31 December 2026, 50% to 30 June 2027, 75% to 31 December 2027, 100% from 2028). The capital ranges shown per licence are the BCB's own ranges by institution group; the exact figure for a firm depends on its activities, investment category and funding source. Neither the BCB nor the CMN sets a statutory decision period for authorisation, so timelines are null. No application fee was found in the rules opened, so fees are null. Virtual assets: Resolução BCB nº 520/2025 entered into force on 2 February 2026. Resolução BCB nº 589 of 23 September 2026 moved the ban on dealing with unauthorised providers to 6 November 2026. Resolução BCB nº 521/2025 brings some virtual asset operations, including certain stablecoin transactions, into the foreign exchange rules. Tokens that are securities stay under the CVM. Sociedades de crédito direto (credit fintechs) are also authorised by the BCB under Resolução CMN nº 4.970/2021; the BCB range for credit companies is BRL 9.8 million to BRL 60 million. Fixed-odds betting: Medida Provisória nº 1.394 of 25 September 2026 prohibits fixed-odds betting and online games in Brazil and ends federal authorisations 30 days after publication, so no gaming licence is listed. A provisional measure must be converted into law by Congress to remain in force; its final status was not checked. Investment advisers and portfolio managers registered with the CVM were not covered in this pass.
General information
About Brazil
Natural Earth boundaries. Map is indicative.
Status
Sovereign state
Capital
Brasília
Largest city
São Paulo
Area
8,515,770 km²
Official languages
Portuguese
Time zone
UTC-03:00 (Brasília time; the country spans UTC-02:00 to UTC-05:00)
Main exports
Crude petroleum
Soybeans
Iron ore
Beef
Coffee
Gold
Copper ore
Aircraft
Main export partners
China
United States
Argentina
Netherlands
Spain
Sources for the country information(12)
Country information checked 13 October 2026. Licensing data updated 13 October 2026. Information only, not legal advice; requirements change. Regulatory notice.
