Today in Crypto: Brazil's central bank bans stablecoin and crypto settlement in cross-border payments

According to recent market coverage, brazil's central bank has banned electronic foreign trading platform (eFX) providers from using stablecoins, bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to settle overseas remittances.

561, published April 30, updates rules for eFX, Brazil's regulated system for digital international payments, purchases, withdrawals and transfers.

The rule takes effect October 1, with adaptation deadlines running into 2027.

Payments between an eFX provider and its foreign counterparty must move through a foreign exchange transaction or a non-resident real-denominated account in Brazil, with cryptocurrencies barred as an option.

A remittance firm cannot take reais from a customer, convert the funds into USDT, USDC or bitcoin and settle the payment abroad on a blockchain.

Traders can still buy, sell, hold and transfer crypto token through authorized virtual asset service providers under Resolution BCB No.

Resolution 561 closes the back-end payment rail used by regulated eFX firms.

The change targets companies like Wise, Nomad and Braza Bank that had built stablecoin settlement into cross-border flows.