FEBRALOT is negotiating with Caixa to maintain Pix withdrawals at lottery outlets in Brazil.

The Brazilian Federation of Lottery Companies (FEBRALOT) is in negotiations with Caixa Econômica Federal to prevent the removal of Pix withdrawals from lottery outlets. The organization released an official statement to the network this Friday (February 21st) informing about the ongoing negotiations. The federation's president and board are working to prevent the measure from being implemented.

Negotiations have been taking place at the administrative level since the announcement of the possible withdrawal of the service. FEBRALOT seeks to ensure that Pix withdrawals remain available at lottery outlets. The discussion on the topic gained momentum after a meeting held last Friday (February 13th) between CAIXA, FEBRALOT, and state unions, when measures to mitigate risks in PIX operations carried out in the lottery network were presented.

The federation clarified that it will evaluate alternatives to defend the network's interests should the administrative phase conclude without a satisfactory solution. The organization did not detail what measures might be taken if the current negotiations do not result in an agreement favorable to the permit holders.

Caixa's motivation does not involve MED Pix.

The statement informed that the reason given for the possible removal of the Pix Withdrawal is unrelated to MED Pix. FEBRALOT also works in relation to MED Pix. The objective is to minimize operational impacts and correct any arbitrary actions that affect the licensees of lottery units.

The Special Return Mechanism (MED) of PIX, an instrument regulated by the Central Bank, allows for the blocking and possible return of funds in specific cases of suspected fraud or operational failures. Under the current system, customers have up to 80 days to dispute payments, resulting in the immediate blocking of funds and a 7-day suspension of transactions at lottery outlets.

The explanation provided to the federation indicates that the motivation for the eventual removal of Pix withdrawals would be linked to a competitive strategy by Caixa in the market in which the bank operates. FEBRALOT stated that it disagrees with this interpretation presented by the financial institution.

During the meeting led by the Lottery Network Management (GERLO), CAIXA announced five main measures to reduce risks in PIX operations: creation of a specific defense flow with employees specialized in the lottery process; reduction of the QR Code validity to only 10 minutes; implementation of user identification for PIX transactions starting February 23; suspension of PIX Withdrawal and PIX Change starting March 16; and implementation, by March 31, of transaction completion conditioned on the identification of the same paying/issuing user.

Impacts on the lottery network

The organization emphasized that the lottery network cannot be disregarded in its operational and economic needs. The potential removal of Pix withdrawals compromises the relevance of lottery outlets to users of banking services unrelated to gambling.

The suspension of Pix Saque and Pix Troco is seen as a negative point by lottery representatives, as it is a very useful and interesting resource for lottery operators and the public, but in practice it will only penalize both sides. Furthermore, the Federation seeks to avoid the exclusion of a transaction method from lottery outlets that is used throughout the retail trade.

FEBRALOT pointed out that the measure would directly affect the flow and sustainability of lottery businesses. Lottery business owners have reported fraud related to PIX's MED system, where scammers arrive at the lottery outlet, make a deposit or PIX withdrawal of significant amounts (R$ 1, R$ 2), and then request a refund. In Mogi das Cruzes, a lottery outlet suffered a refund of R$ 18 without explanation, facing a block on PIX operations from other institutions for a week during the investigation.

Lottery representatives expressed concerns about several aspects of the system, including issues related to the allocation of financial risk in refunds via MED (Electronic Payment Method) and the operational impossibility of reversing bets already registered in the CAIXA (Brazilian Federal Savings Bank) system. Negative points remain due to the debiting of the disputed amount by the payer immediately after the dispute, forcing the lottery operator to pay this amount out of their own pocket – an imminent risk impossible to calculate and therefore impossible to prepare for.

CAIXA has informed that the Central Bank has instructed individualized analyses of notifications involving lottery accounts, considering the activity, history, and operational profile of each unit. When undue charges of interest and IOF (Tax on Financial Operations) related to these transactions are identified, the amounts will be refunded to the lottery establishments.

Among the changes proposed by CEF, the identification of the user making the PIX payment stands out as a positive point, since in practice this action, which is already used in the withdrawal process, tends to be more effective. With this information in hand, added to the request for an official document with a photo (ID card, driver's license, work card, passport, etc.), only the account holder will be able to make payments via PIX.

The federation reaffirmed its commitment to defending the interests of the category. The entity informed that it will continue to act responsibly, through institutional dialogue and firmness, to preserve the strategic importance of the lottery network. It is important to emphasize that CEF (Caixa Econômica Federal) committed to creating additional resources in the process to mitigate the risks of losses until the end of March 2026, although there is nothing that corrects or signals a definitive correction to the problem; that is, the lottery network remains exposed to financial losses due to the use of PIX (Brazil's instant payment system).

The statement was signed by Ricardo Amado Costa, president of FEBRALOT. The federation reported that it remains vigilant and will keep the network duly informed about the developments in the negotiations with Caixa Econômica Federal.