Latin America witnessed a flurry of crypto developments this week: Brazil enacted a blanket ban on non-financial prediction markets, a new report highlighted the region's growing Bitcoin mining potential, and the country's largest bank, Itau, moved into Bitcoin mining via a venture investment.
Brazil Bans Non-Financial Prediction Market Contracts
On April 24, Brazil's National Monetary Council (CMN) published Resolution No. 5,298, which prohibits derivative contracts tied to real sporting events, virtual online gaming events, and real or virtual events of a political, electoral, social, cultural, or entertainment nature. The move effectively shuts down non-financial prediction market platforms in the country.
The resolution explicitly allows derivatives linked to economic and financial benchmarks, including price or rate indices, securities indices, bond indices, exchange rates, commodity prices, and financial assets traded on regulated exchanges or over-the-counter markets. Brazil's gambling watchdog, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), had issued a technical note arguing that prediction market platforms “simply reproduce the essential elements of fixed quota bets,” which paved the way for the ban.
Hashrate Index: Brazil and Venezuela Hold Key to Latam's Mining Superpower Status
According to Hashrate Index's “The State of Bitcoin Mining in Latin America (2026)” report, Latin America is on the cusp of becoming a major player in global Bitcoin mining. While Paraguay already ranks fourth globally with 43 EH/s (4.3% of global hashrate), Brazil saw its hashrate share surge 133% year-over-year, opening new opportunities for miners to negotiate directly with energy generators and bypass distributor tariffs.
Venezuela, despite challenging conditions, recorded 5 EH/s of hashrate, signaling untapped potential. The report emphasized that favorable energy policies and abundant renewable resources could transform Latin America into a Bitcoin mining powerhouse.
Brazil's Largest Bank Itau Invests $10 Million in Bitcoin Mining
Itau Ventures, the investment arm of Brazil's largest bank Itau, has made an undisclosed investment totaling $10 million in the startup Minter. Minter addresses one of the biggest pain points in green energy: curtailment—the waste of surplus renewable energy.
Traditional mining hardware is fixed in location; Minter combines it with mobile containers that can be deployed directly at renewable generation sites. This allows energy producers to monetize otherwise wasted electricity or avoid curtailing production, creating a new revenue stream for green projects. Backed by Itau's reputation, Minter aims to scale its mobile mining solution across Latin America, further integrating Bitcoin mining with the region's renewable energy boom.
In summary, Brazil is tightening regulation on prediction markets while actively fostering Bitcoin mining through banking capital and hashrate growth. Latin America is solidifying its role as a key frontier in the global crypto landscape.