Roughly 40 institutions entered Brazil's crypto licensing process before the October 30 deadline, far below the 150 to 200 the market expected. Smaller platforms struggled with capital and compliance demands, and companies that missed the cutoff have 30 days to wind down.
Brazil's crypto licensing process drew roughly 40 institutions before the October 30 deadline. Brazilian law firm Panucci, Severo e Nebias Advogados (PSNA) said that figure was well below market expectations of 150 to 200 companies seeking authorization from the Central Bank of Brazil.
The applicants identified as of October 29 included international exchanges, banks, payment fintechs and stock exchange operator B3. Companies that missed the deadline have 30 days to wind down, and from November 6 banks and payment institutions will generally be barred from handling virtual asset transactions with unauthorized providers.
Compliance costs push smaller platforms out
Tiago Severo Gomes, a PSNA partner covering crypto, said minimum capital was only part of the problem. Companies must also maintain internal controls, audited financial statements and anti-money laundering programs. Applicants also face requirements on customer asset custody, proof of reserves and financial reporting. He said many smaller platforms concluded they could not run the systems that central bank supervision demands.
Several companies have already left. Argentine platform Lemon exited Brazil because the capital needed to keep its local business was too expensive, and it plans to close approximately 15,000 Brazilian accounts. Coinext, NovaDAX and Digitra.com have closed or reduced their Brazilian retail operations.
Some international exchanges have reorganized their local operations. Binance submitted its application through BBrasil, a Brazilian entity set up for crypto services under the new framework. Meanwhile, Itaú formalized its crypto services on October 27, covering trading and custody.
Stablecoins remain central to Brazil's crypto market
The small applicant pool contrasts with activity in the market. According to the PSNA assessment, Brazilian taxpayers reported R$505.5 billion in crypto transactions during 2025, a 21.5% increase from the previous year. Dollar-pegged stablecoins accounted for approximately two-thirds of that volume.
Gomes expects stablecoin issuance and real-world asset tokenization to become important subjects in the next phase of regulatory discussions. He also said the framework could let banks, cooperatives and retailers offer crypto through partnerships with authorized companies, without building their own exchanges.
Source: crypto.news
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
