President of Brazil’s Central Bank calls for more powers to curb illegal betting
The Central Bank of Brazil’s president Gabriel Galípolo, has requested for additional regulatory powers to combat illegal betting operations. He explained that the current laws limits the Bank’s ability as it cannot step in or punish those involved in unauthorised gambling transactions.
Speaking before the Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPI) on betting on 8 April, Galípolo clarified the limitations imposed on the Central Bank by Law No. 14,790 of 2023. He explained that the Bank is only authorised to inform financial institutions when they can no longer provide services to gambling companies—once formally advised by the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA)—but cannot intervene in transactions directly.
“I know that the Senators are well aware of this, but it is important to start by highlighting that the Central Bank of Brazil does not have the legal authority to monitor or apply sanctions for transactions involving fixed-odds betting carried out with legal entities that are not authorised to carry out this activity. There is no authority attributed to the Central Bank in Law No. 14,790 of 2023,” said Galípolo.
“Without specific regulations for the Central Bank, there is no authority for supervision and sanctioning on our part. Therefore, our activities do not include the control or regulation of specific operations related to fixed-odds betting provided for in the aforementioned law and its subsequent regulation.”
During the session, Galípolo responded to questions about whether the Central Bank had the capacity to take action against internet providers or payment institutions that facilitate access to illegal betting sites. He stressed that the SPA is the sole authority empowered to determine which bets are authorised.
Gabriel Galípolo diz à CPI que Banco Central não possui papel na regulamentação das bets https://t.co/OZ3EJBVsrQ pic.twitter.com/LWl4t9zeFx
— Senado Federal (@SenadoFederal) April 8, 2025
“The SPA is the one that defines which bet is authorised or not,” he stated, reiterating that only financial institutions themselves can block transactions after being notified.
Galípolo also pointed to the delay in Congress finalising regulations for online sports betting—first approved in 2018 and only given full legislative clarity in 2023—as a contributing factor to the growth of the black market in gambling.
He further supported the idea of the Central Bank having more involvement in the regulatory process, saying he firmly believes it should play a larger role.
In parallel to his remarks, the Central Bank has released figures showing that Brazilians are wagering up to $5.1 billion on online betting platforms each month. According to Galípolo, the SPA estimates that 94% of these amounts are currently being returned as prizes.
In related developments, the SPA has recently mandated that all authorised fixed-odds betting operators must submit their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing policies for review.
