One million reais. That is the threshold above which online betting accounts, known in Brazil as bets, will be investigated by the federal government for suspected money laundering, according to UOL Economia. For the average bettor with small amounts left in an account, nothing changes: refunds still go ahead on schedule starting Friday, October 9.
The review comes amid the refund process that followed Brazil's ban on online betting, imposed by a provisional measure (an executive order that takes effect immediately but needs congressional approval) signed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on September 25. According to a bulletin from the Prizes and Betting Secretariat of the Finance Ministry cited by Poder360, about R$1.325 billion still has to go back to roughly 26.5 million bettors. Agência Brasil reports slightly different figures: the ministry estimates 23 million users and up to R$1.7 billion to refund.
Refunds follow a calendar. Betting firms report remaining balances to banks on October 7 and 8, and financial institutions return the money between October 9 and 14, matching each bettor by tax ID (CPF). If a transfer fails, state-owned Caixa Econômica Federal takes over payments from October 14.
Explainer: what money laundering means
Money laundering is the process of making criminal proceeds look legal, as if they had been earned honestly. Betting accounts moving millions can be used for that: a person deposits dirty money, circulates it on the platform and withdraws it as if it were a prize. That is why the government will analyze high-value accounts, also looking for ties to criminal organizations, according to Poder360.
The vast majority of accounts are nowhere near that level. According to the Finance Ministry bulletin, 86.2 million accounts hold between R$0.01 and R$0.99, adding up to R$15.5 million, under 2% of the total to be refunded. One person can hold accounts on several platforms.
In court, the Attorney General's Office (AGU) reversed its position and asked the Supreme Court (STF) on October 2 to declare unconstitutional the 2018 and 2023 laws that legalized and regulated betting. In its filing to the case handled by Justice Luiz Fux, the office cited household indebtedness and a 140% rise in care by the public health system (SUS) for gambling-related disorders, according to Agência Brasil. Industry groups ANJL and IBJR are asking the court to strike down the betting ban.