Brazil sets 24-hour hold on crypto transfers above $10,000 from January 2027

Banco Central do Brasil has finalised a regulation requiring Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) to impose a holding period of up to 24 hours on certain crypto and stablecoin transactions before processing them. The rule covers transfers where a customer’s activity reaches or exceeds $10,000, whether through a single transfer or daily aggregate, when the destination is an offshore virtual asset entity or a self-hosted wallet. VASPs may also extend the hold to additional transactions flagged under their own risk frameworks. The regulation takes effect on 1 January 2027.

The central bank was careful to frame the hold not as a freeze but as a compliance window: once a VASP completes its risk assessment, it may release funds before the full 24 hours elapse. VASPs are required to notify clients of any hold and to keep records of fraud incidents, attempted fraud, and the remedial actions taken.

Brasil’s central bank cited the accelerating use of virtual assets, including stablecoins, to move fraud proceeds rapidly to offshore platforms or self-hosted wallets, where recovery becomes difficult. The rulemaking moved quickly: first proposed in late July 2025 under a fast-tracked process and finalised on 7 August, roughly two weeks later. Industry body ABcripto submitted objections during the consultation window, but the final text appears largely unchanged from the proposal.