Uruguay’s BCU opens online PSAV filing

Update August 29, 2026: The BCU filing is now published and updated on gub.uy, with a fully online channel and a precise scope for the activities covered. The coverage also added a transitional period for PSAVs already operating and the link to Communication 2026/116 on public fundraising.

The Central Bank of Uruguay now offers a digital filing process to authorize and register Virtual Asset Service Providers before the Superintendency of Financial Services. The official page, updated on August 26, 2026 on gub.uy, says the channel is 100% online and applies to legal entities that exchange, transfer, safeguard, or manage cryptoassets and digital tokens.

What changes for virtual asset providers?

The new framework requires PSAVs to complete their authorization request online before starting operations. The BCU confirmed the measure in a statement released through its official channels on August 21, 2026, and Uruguayan media repeated that the process will be fully digital.

The filing page also says public agencies cannot demand extra requirements or documents when the information can be obtained through secure digital means from other entities, in line with Decree 353/23. According to Nación, the new process is based on Law 20.345 and Circular 2.507, which set the regulatory framework for companies that professionally provide exchange, transfer, custody, or administration services for virtual assets.

What happens to firms already operating?

Uruguayan media reported that providers already in operation will have a transition period to come into compliance. They may submit the authorization and registration request until March 31, 2027, and keep operating while the BCU processes the application.

That deadline does not apply to new market entrants. Anyone starting to provide these services after the regime takes effect must obtain authorization before beginning operations, according to the reported coverage.

What does this have to do with public fundraising?

BCU Communication 2026/116 was attached to the same regime and adds requirements for public fundraising activities. Sources citing that communication say anyone starting those activities after it takes effect must file a mandatory sworn statement before beginning operations.

Ámbito also said Communication 2026/116 explicitly ties the new PSAV online filing to transparency requirements for public fundraising through advance sworn statements. In parallel, regulatory analysis cited in the material says BCU registration works in practice as a compliance mechanism for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing, operational resilience, cybersecurity, and consumer protection.

What other recent steps did the BCU take?

The BCU Superintendency of Financial Services issued Circular No. 2509, dated August 20, 2026, with changes to customer warnings about foreign exchange risk exposure in foreign currency deposits. According to Cadena del Mar, as of October 1, 2026, institutions authorized to take deposits must provide a specific document to certain customers, and they may do so by email or through a prominent notice on websites or digital channels for at least 10 business days.

The Rio Times expanded that scope and said the obligation will cover any resident individual or sole proprietorship opening a new foreign currency account. The outlet also said banks will have until December 31, 2026 to notify existing customers with foreign currency deposits, either by email to the registered address or through a prominent notice for at least ten business days.

What did the BCU say about bank secrecy in open finance?

In the parliamentary debate on open finance, the BCU's secretary general told a legislative committee that the system does not create an exception to bank secrecy. According to her remarks, the backbone of the framework is the prior, explicit, and informed consent of the data subject.

The debate did not stop there. La Diaria reported that the opposition pushed to include in the bill a personal, absolute, and non-transferable right to secrecy over personal information, with a clause that would prevent citizens from being coerced, pressured, or encouraged to give consent to disclose their data. That position narrows the BCU's approach, which defended consent as the central pillar of the system.