Reports of suspicious financial activity linked to online betting and lottery operators rose sharply in Brazil in 2025, according to data from the Council for the Control of Financial Activities (Coaf).
The numbers show that 27,561 suspicious activity reports related to fixed-odds betting and lottery operations were recorded last year.
This represents a significant increase compared with 2024, when 928 cases were registered. The number of reports stood at 1,157 in 2023 and 1,244 in 2022. The rise coincides with the formal implementation of Brazil’s betting regulation in January 2025.
Under the regulatory framework, licensed operators and financial institutions must notify Coaf if they identify transactions that may indicate suspicious or irregular activity.
Despite the increase in reporting, authorities believe money laundering risks remain a concern due to the continued presence of illegal betting operators.
Market estimates suggest that unlicensed companies may still represent around 40% of the sector.
To address this issue, Coaf has been working with financial institutions to improve the identification of accounts linked to irregular betting operations.
According to officials, some operators avoid detection by registering businesses under unrelated corporate classifications, making it harder for banks to automatically flag them as gambling operators.
The financial intelligence body has therefore begun providing guidance to banks on transaction patterns and operational typologies that may indicate illegal betting activity.
Authorities say this collaboration is intended to strengthen preventive controls and help financial institutions close gaps exploited by unlicensed platforms.
According to Brazil’s Secretariat of Prizes and Betting, financial institutions and payment providers submitted 1,255 reports of suspected illegal betting activity in 2025.
São Paulo recently approved a large digital billboard project inspired by Times Square but the initiative prohibits betting advertising on the screens
