Chile tightens controls against financial fraud

Chile moved in August to tighten its response to financial fraud, with a public-private task force against transnational crime, a Central Bank warning about the steady rise in payment fraud since 2024, a proposed regulatory framework for stablecoins, and the approaching full enforcement of Law 21,719 on Personal Data Protection.

What happened to payment fraud?

The Central Bank of Chile said in its Payment Systems Report that fraud rates in payment methods have risen steadily since 2024, and that debit cards remain the instrument with the most persistent incidents in online purchases. The warning came alongside press coverage that drew on the same report and flagged new scams in digital payments.

CNN Chile, citing the central bank report, said the growth in digital payments has been accompanied by new forms of fraud. Fayerwayer, also based on the report, highlighted debit cards as carrying the highest risk in online purchases.

What public and private coordination was launched?

Chilean authorities and financial-sector organizations agreed to form a National Task Force Against Transnational Financial Fraud to coordinate prevention, detection and prosecution of these crimes. The initiative also aims to push legislative reforms, improve the regulatory framework and develop public prevention and communications strategies.

According to SERNAC, the agreement was signed by public bodies including the Public Prosecutor's Office, the National Cybersecurity Agency, the CMF, the SII, the UAF and the service itself, along with private-sector and academic participants. ABIF added that BancoEstado, the Association of Banks, the Financial Retail Association and NIC Chile are also involved. The association said the task force is intended to reduce the incidence of transnational economic and financial crime.

What changes for stablecoins?

The Central Bank of Chile has opened a consultation on a new stablecoin regulatory framework that would set conditions for issuance in the country as a means of payment. Claudio Raddatz, head of the Financial Policy Division, said the goal is to have a regulatory framework in place by next year, with a proposal expected by the end of this year.

Raddatz also said the work will receive technical assistance from the International Monetary Fund during the second half of the year. In the same interview, the Central Bank said its regulatory role will focus on payment initiators that take on payment obligations or hold public funds, leaving out purely technological uses that do not involve taking in funds.

How does data protection fit into this picture?

Law 21,719 on Personal Data Protection, published in December 2024, will take full effect on December 1, 2026 and will strengthen data subject rights, while creating the Personal Data Protection Agency and new obligations for organizations that process personal data, including financial institutions.

That regulatory shift intersects with the fraud agenda and the work of the National Task Force, because banks, financial retail and supervisors will have to adjust data handling policies, internal governance and incident-prevention measures in a context of greater pressure on payment rails and digital services.

Were there recent CMF sanctions?

The Financial Market Commission fined Nevasa S.A. Corredores de Bolsa 6,000 UF for violations of Article 59, letter g) of Law 18.045, in connection with General Rule No. 18 and Circular No. 695, due to the submission of false information about its financial condition.

That case adds another regulatory front in Chile's securities market, in a week when new rules for digital payments, anti-fraud coordination and looming data protection obligations all moved forward.