Welcome to Latam Insights, a weekly roundup of the most relevant crypto news from Latin America. This edition covers Brazil's blanket ban on non-financial prediction market contracts, a Hashrate Index report highlighting the region's bitcoin mining potential, and Itau Ventures' $10 million investment in mobile mining startup Minter.
Brazil Issues Sweeping Ban on Non-Financial Prediction Markets
On April 24, Brazil's National Monetary Council published Resolution No. 5,298, prohibiting derivative contracts related to non-financial underlying events. The ban covers contracts tied to real sporting events, virtual online gaming events, or real or virtual events of a political, electoral, social, cultural, or entertainment nature. The resolution explicitly allows derivatives linked to economic and financial benchmarks (price indices, interest rates, exchange rates), commodity prices, and financial assets traded on organized exchanges or OTC markets. The measure follows a technical note from the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), Brazil's gambling regulator, which concluded that prediction market platforms 'essentially reproduce the essential elements of fixed-odds bets.' This is a major regulatory move that will impact platforms like Polymarket operating in Brazil.
Hashrate Index: Brazil and Venezuela Poised to Boost Latam's Bitcoin Mining Share
According to Hashrate Index's 'The State of Bitcoin Mining in Latin America (2026)' report, Latin America is on the verge of becoming a larger player in the global mining landscape. While Paraguay currently ranks fourth with 43 EH/s (4.3% of global hashrate), Brazil and Venezuela show the most growth potential. Brazil has increased its hashrate share by 133% year-over-year, driven by a new regulatory framework that allows miners to negotiate directly with energy generation companies to lock in tariffs, bypassing distributor surcharges. Venezuela, despite ongoing challenges, contributes 5 EH/s of untapped potential. The report concludes that Latin America is emerging as a bitcoin mining powerhouse.
Itau Ventures Invests $10 Million in Mobile Bitcoin Mining Startup Minter
Itau, one of Brazil's largest banks, has moved into bitcoin mining through its venture arm Itau Ventures. The firm made an undisclosed investment in Minter, reported by local media to be up to $10 million. Minter addresses a key problem in green energy installations: curtailment. The company combines traditional mining hardware with mobile containers, allowing mining operations to be deployed directly at renewable energy generation sites, thereby converting wasted energy into bitcoin hashrate. Backed by Itau's reputation, Minter positions itself as a solution for energy producers looking to monetize surplus power. This investment signals traditional finance's growing interest in sustainable crypto mining.