Caixa Econômica Federal will not enter Brazil’s sports betting market in 2026, reportedly following federal government direction. The state bank said it holds an authorisation valid until 2029 and continues to assess opportunities in the sector.
Caixa will defer market entry while retaining an authorisation and continuing to assess opportunities.
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Brazil’s Attorney General’s Office has asked Supreme Federal Court Minister Luiz Fux for 72 hours to address challenges by ANJL and IBJR to a provisional measure banning betting. The groups seek to suspend the measure’s effects while the court considers their claims.
Brazil's Attorney General's Office (AGU) has requested that Supreme Federal Court (STF) Minister Luiz Fux grant it 72 hours to reply to a legal challenge against the country's betting ban. Betting entities lodged the suit with the STF on Monday, seeking to overturn the provisional measure prohibiting betting that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced on Friday. The AGU says the bodies responsible need time to defend the acts and regulations at issue, and it describes the request as strictly procedural, without anticipating any position on the merits.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ordered a halt to fixed-odds betting through a provisional measure, with authorised operators’ sites and apps due to cease activity on 6 October. Players can request withdrawals until 5 October; operators must consolidate identified customer balances on 7 and 8 October and return remaining funds through banks and financial intermediaries between 9 and 14 October. The measure excludes compensation for lost profits and investments, according to the report.
Brazil's government announced a timetable following its measure to prohibit fixed-odds betting, with new deposits barred from publication and platforms due to go offline on 6 October. Users could withdraw balances until 5 October; banks were to return remaining funds from 9 to 14 October, with Caixa Econômica Federal handling cases where repayment was impeded.
Four candidates in Brazil's 2026 presidential election support prohibiting sports betting platforms, citing Folha de S. Paulo. The report puts the sector's 2025 public revenue at R$12.2bn and says the candidates have not specified replacement revenues. Other candidates propose tighter regulation, advertising restrictions or higher taxation.
Caixa has delayed its planned sports betting launch in Brazil until 2027, reportedly, amid pressure from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and criticism from the Federal Court of Accounts. The state-owned bank paid a BRL30 million licence fee in August 2025; it said its strategic decisions follow technical, legal and sustainability criteria and federal government guidelines.