During the plenary session on December 17, the senators passed the Executive Measure transfering the Council for Financial Activities Control (Coaf, for its acronym in Spanish) from the Ministry of Economy to the Central Bank, updating the organism’s structure. The regulations, which have already been passed by Deputies, were sent to the Executive for enactment.  

Coaf is responsible for producing information to prevent and combat money laundering, applying administrative sanctions to entities in the financial system when they fail to submit the data requested. The text also includes a provision to allow for a prison sentence of 1 to 4 years for anyone revealing information they obtained from Coaf to other parties, such as the media, without the requisite legal or judicial authorization.

Senator Álvaro Dias (Podemos –– opposition) described the transfer of the Coaf to the Central Bank as “backward”, given that the agency performed well in the fight against corruption and in assisting Operation Lava Jato. He voiced the opinion that in order to function better, it should report to the Ministry of Justice and added that the financial system “has no interest” in investigating atypical movements. 

The Council will be comprised of officials from various different economic areas, such as the Federal Revenue Service and the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission, and they will all be elected and appointed by the President of the Central Bank.