OFAC sanctions PCC-linked crypto network moving US drug cash to Brazil

What happened

On 1 July 2026, the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated six parties tied to Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), described as Latin America’s largest criminal gang. The action names two Brazilian nationals and four companies: three Brazilian firms and one Portuguese firm. Each was placed on the specially designated national (SDN) list.

OFAC identifies Victor Henrique de Oliveira Shimada as the network’s leader. It operated through companies including Victory Trading, Pixwave Solucoes De Pagamentos Ltda, and Wave Construcoes Inteligentes Ltda, all based in Sao Paulo.

According to the US Department of the Treasury, the network received illicit funds generated in the United States and laundered them for PCC in Brazil. Shimada and his organization laundered more than $30 million in proceeds generated in and around multiple US cities. They used cryptocurrency to move the funds back to Brazil.

This is the first US sanction on PCC figures since the group’s terrorist designation. The State Department named PCC a specially designated global terrorist (SDGT) on 28 May 2026. The foreign terrorist organization (FTO) designation took effect on 5 June 2026.

Why it matters

The designation folds a drug-money-laundering case into counter-terrorism authority. That shift matters. Once a group carries FTO and SDGT status, the exposure is no longer just SDN screening. Material support to the organization can trigger criminal liability, and the knowledge standard is broad.

The mechanics are ordinary, which is the point. Proceeds earned on US streets moved through trading and payments companies, then out via cryptocurrency to Brazil. A payments processor and a construction firm sit inside the same structure, a reminder that laundering rides real operating businesses.

The unanswered question is reach. OFAC names six parties, but a network that repatriated more than $30 million rarely runs through six nodes alone. Expect follow-on designations and correspondent exposure beyond the named entities.

Practitioner angle

• Screen all six designated parties today: the two individuals and the four entities, including Victory Trading, Pixwave Solucoes De Pagamentos Ltda, and Wave Construcoes Inteligentes Ltda. Treat name and identifier matches as immediate blocks, not review items.
• Given the FTO and SDGT status, run material-support risk analysis, not SDN screening alone. Assess whether any counterparty, corridor, or product could constitute support to a designated terrorist organization.
• Pull US-to-Brazil payment corridors and crypto off-ramps for the last twelve months. Look for the pattern here: US-origin cash converted to crypto, then settled to Brazilian beneficiaries through trading or payments entities.
• Flag Brazilian trading, payments, and construction companies with sudden US-linked inflows for enhanced due diligence.

The single most important action: screen the six parties now, then re-run it as a material-support review, because SDN matching alone understates the liability an FTO designation creates.