Stablecoins in the FX market: what took effect on May 4, 2026 under BCB Resolution 521
The second phase of BCB Resolution 521 took effect on May 4, 2026: the purpose of the payment, data on the payer or recipient abroad, and monthly reporting of information to the Central Bank of Brazil.
Historical reference: May 5, 2026. Published on this site on November 2, 2026. Dates in the text identify the period covered.
In this article
Key points
- BCB Resolution 521 had two effective dates: February 2, 2026 for the core rule and May 4, 2026 for the purpose of the operation, information annexes and reporting.
- Since May 4, the provider must ask the customer for the purpose of the virtual-asset payment abroad and for the data of whoever pays or receives outside Brazil.
- The data goes to the Central Bank of Brazil by the 5th of the month after the operation; under BCB Normative Instruction 693, the first reference date is May 2026.
- Anyone paying a supplier with a stablecoin should have the invoice, name, country and relationship with the beneficiary at hand: without that data the operation does not pass registration.
São Paulo, May 5, 2026 — The missing part of BCB Resolution No. 521/2025 has been in force since Monday, May 4. It requires virtual asset service providers to collect the purpose of each international payment and to send information on these operations to the Central Bank of Brazil (BCB) every month. The core rule, which treats an international payment or transfer with a stablecoin as a foreign exchange operation, had applied since February 2.
For importers who pay a foreign supplier in USDT, the change is practical: registering the operation now asks for more data, and that data reaches the regulator. This text separates what applied before from what has just begun, based on the official text of the resolution and of the normative instruction that details the reporting. The general structure of the rule is in BCB Resolution 521: international payment with stablecoin becomes foreign exchange, the three resolutions of November 2025 are in Central Bank publishes Resolutions 519, 520 and 521, and what began in February is in Central Bank crypto rules take effect.
- Start of the purpose and reporting requirement (art. 6, I, of BCB Resolution 521)
- 5/4/2026
- Monthly deadline to send information to the BCB (art. 82-A of BCB Resolution 277)
- 5th
- Per-payment limit for using Annex III purposes (art. 76-C)
- US$50,000
- First reference date for reporting (BCB NI 693, art. 2)
- May 2026
The two effective dates of Resolution 521
Article 6 of BCB Resolution 521 splits the entry into force. Most of the text took effect on February 2, 2026, together with Resolutions 519 and 520. Article 76-C and article 82-A of BCB Resolution 277 (the regulation of the foreign exchange market), the new Annex II-A of the same resolution, the new table of special operations in Annex V and the changes to the rules on external credit and foreign direct investment in virtual assets (arts. 2, 3 and 4 of Resolution 521) were left for May 4.
| Since | What took effect | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| February 2, 2026 | International payments or transfers with virtual assets, and the purchase, sale or exchange of fiat-referenced assets, enter the foreign exchange market | Art. 76-A of BCB Resolution 277 |
| February 2, 2026 | Definition of international payment with a virtual asset; verification of the provider abroad | Art. 76-B |
| February 2, 2026 | Limit of US$100,000 per international payment or transfer when the counterparty is not an institution authorized to operate in foreign exchange (service provider companies); cash is prohibited | Art. 29, IV |
| February 2, 2026 | Identification of the owner of a self-custodied wallet and processes to verify the origin and destination of the assets | Art. 76-A, § 5 |
| May 4, 2026 | Collection of the payment purpose and of the data of the payer or recipient abroad | Art. 76-C |
| May 4, 2026 | Sending of information to the Central Bank by the 5th of the following month | Art. 82-A and Annex II-A |
| May 4, 2026 | Adjustments to external credit and foreign direct investment with virtual assets; new table of special operations | Arts. 3 and 4 of Resolution 521 |
What the provider now asks the customer for
Article 76-C lists four obligations for anyone carrying out an international payment or transfer with a virtual asset.
- Obtain the purpose of the payment from the customer, presenting the codes in Annex III or Annex IV. Annex III applies to operations of up to the equivalent of US$50,000 per payment; above that, Annex IV applies.
- Offer guidance and technical support to customers who need to classify the purpose correctly.
- Obtain the Annex VI information on the payer or recipient abroad and that person's link to the customer.
- Adjust, at the customer's request, information already given about the payment.
In practice, whoever pays a supplier now states, besides the amount and the wallet, why they are paying (for example, import of goods), who receives the payment, in which country and what the relationship with the company is. These fields echo what traditional foreign exchange already required in exchange contracts; what is new is that they now also apply when settlement happens in a stablecoin.
The monthly report to the Central Bank
Article 82-A requires institutions authorized to operate in foreign exchange to send the BCB, by the 5th of the following month, the Annex II-A information on their operations with virtual assets. The sole paragraph extends the rule to service provider companies that were already operating and continue to do so during the period to apply for authorization (art. 29, § 5). Annex II-A defines four groups of data:
The technical procedure is in BCB Normative Instruction No. 693, of December 19, 2025. It creates document C212 (file ACAM212), sent through the File Transfer System (STA), and sets the information to apply from the May 2026 reference date. This means the first file, covering May operations, must be sent by June 5. Service provider companies already operating on February 2 must register in Sisbacen and request the PSTA300 and SCAM0019 services. Banks, securities brokers, exchange brokers and service provider companies are among those required to send it.
BCB Resolution 561, approved on April 30, 2026 and published in the Official Gazette on May 5, changes the eFX service (lower-value international payment or transfer). Among other points, it bans the use of virtual assets in settlement between the eFX provider and the counterparty abroad, which must take place through a foreign exchange operation or a non-resident reais account. The resolution takes effect on October 1, 2026. It does not ban stablecoins in general.
What stays the same and what is still open
- 11/10/2025Central Bank publishes BCB Resolutions 519, 520 and 521.
- 12/19/2025BCB Normative Instruction 693 defines document C212 and the submission procedure.
- 02/02/2026The core rules take effect, including classification as foreign exchange and the US$100,000 limit.
- 05/04/2026Purpose collection (art. 76-C) and the reporting duty (art. 82-A, Annex II-A) begin to apply.
- 06/05/2026Deadline for the first monthly submission, with the May reference date, under BCB NI 693.
- 10/30/2026End of the 270-day period to apply for authorization, under BCB Resolution 520.
The US$100,000 limit per operation, the classification as foreign exchange and the identification of the owner of a self-custodied wallet did not change on May 4. The resolution also does not address taxation: any IOF (Brazil's tax on financial operations) on these operations depends on tax law, not on the Central Bank's rule. Companies should confirm the treatment with an accountant or tax adviser.
For the payment flow, the recommendation is straightforward: have the supporting document (invoice, order or contract), the beneficiary's full name and country, the beneficiary's relationship with the company and the purpose ready before starting the operation. At Swapo Finance, which acts as an intermediary on behalf of and on the order of the customer, a supplier payment requires identification of the beneficiary (name, country and TRC-20 wallet), the purpose and a supporting document, such as an invoice, order or contract.
Frequently asked questions
What changed on May 4, 2026 for stablecoin payments?
Article 76-C took effect, requiring the provider to collect the purpose of the payment and the data of whoever pays or receives abroad, as did article 82-A, which requires monthly submission of the information to the Central Bank. Classification as a foreign exchange operation had applied since February 2.
When must providers send the first report to the Central Bank?
BCB Normative Instruction 693 sets submission to apply from the May 2026 reference date. Since the deadline is the 5th of the following month, the first file, covering May operations, must be sent by June 5, 2026.
What is the limit for paying abroad with a stablecoin?
For virtual asset service provider companies, an international payment or transfer is limited to the equivalent of US$100,000 per operation when the counterparty is not an institution authorized to operate in the foreign exchange market (art. 29, IV, of BCB Resolution 277, as worded by Resolution 521). That limit has applied since February 2, 2026.
Do I need to state the purpose of the payment abroad?
Yes. The provider must ask for the purpose using the codes in Annexes III or IV of BCB Resolution 277. Annex III applies to operations of up to the equivalent of US$50,000 per payment. The provider must also guide the customer in classifying it.
Found it useful? Share it with anyone who pays suppliers abroad.
Sources
- Resolução BCB nº 521, de 10 de novembro de 2025 · Banco Central do Brasil, Nov 10, 2025
- Instrução Normativa BCB nº 693, de 19 de dezembro de 2025 · Banco Central do Brasil, Dec 19, 2025
- Resolução BCB nº 561, de 30 de abril de 2026 · Banco Central do Brasil, Apr 30, 2026
- Brazil bars crypto settlement in regulated cross-border payment rails · Cointelegraph, May 1, 2026
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