Itaú Unibanco notifies Brazil's central bank of its crypto trading and custody services

Itaú Unibanco told Brazil's central bank on 27 October that it operates as a virtual-asset service provider, covering the buying and selling of crypto for clients and holding those assets in custody. It filed three days before the 30 October deadline for banks already active in crypto under Resolution BCB 520.

The filing is a notification, not a licence application: banks follow a separate track from standalone crypto firms, which must apply for authorization. It must come with an independent technical certification, and the central bank can ask for more information or order a wind-down within 30 days.

Itaú has let customers trade crypto since December 2023 and now offers 15 digital assets, including bitcoin, ether and USDC. It does not disclose client numbers or volumes. Guto Antunes, its superintendent of digital assets, said clear rules help the whole industry.