A former employee of Banco Master and executive of Tirreno, a company used to originate loans totalling R$ 12.2 billion sold to Banco de Brasília (BRB), is under investigation for suspected money laundering linked to illegal betting.
In Brazil André Felipe de Oliveira Seixas Maia was also a partner in a company identified as central to an illegal gambling scheme.
According to an investigation by the São Paulo Civil Police, the company acted as a “central piece in the financial machinery” of a criminal organization dedicated to illegal gambling.
The defence maintains that the businessman did not commit any illegal acts and that this will be proven during the course of the investigation, which is being conducted under seal.
Following police investigations in March 2025, Maia and other partners left the payment intermediary Silium, which changed its name to Nuoro Pay. According to the police, the change “suggests an attempt at corporate reorganization or concealment of the company’s true control structure.”
During that period, Tirreno transferred approximately R$ 6.7 billion in credits to Banco Master without a clear payment history. Banco Master then transferred these assets to BRB for R$ 12.2 billion.
The Federal Police indicate that these were non-existent credits, with Tirreno being used as a shell company.
Meanwhile, the investigation into illegal betting indicates that Silium/Nuoro Pay managed accounts for shell companies that received funds from illegal bets, including games like “Tigrerinho” (Little Tiger). The funds were allegedly fragmented through “pool accounts” to make tracking more difficult.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office of São Paulo states that there is evidence of a “sophisticated and widespread structure, with transnational operations, dedicated to gambling, financial fraud, and money laundering.”
The investigation into the betting schemes does not indicate a direct link to Banco Master’s operations, but investigators believe it reveals the complexity of the fronts being investigated involving executives connected to the bank.
This is likely to begin to be just the beginning in what will be a long and complex case. On November 18, PF (Polícia Federal) launched Operation Compliance Zero and arrested Banco Master’s owner amid allegations of a BRL 12 billion fraud (about USD 2.3 billion). The Central Bank liquidated Banco Master the same day, marking Brazil’s largest-ever bank fraud case.
The post Brazil’s biggest ever banking fraud scandal linked to illegal gambling appeared first on G3 Newswire.
A former employee of Banco Master and executive of Tirreno, a company used to originate loans totalling R$ 12.2 billion sold to Banco de Brasília (BRB), is under investigation for suspected money laundering linked to illegal betting. In Brazil André Felipe de Oliveira Seixas Maia was also a partner in a company identified as central…
The post Brazil’s biggest ever banking fraud scandal linked to illegal gambling appeared first on G3 Newswire.