Nubank and Mercado Pago temporarily suspended key cryptocurrency transfer functions on Friday, November 6, 2026, after disruptions at external data and risk-monitoring providers. The measures affected deposits and withdrawals involving external wallets, though customers retained the ability to buy and sell digital assets inside each platform.

Nubank, a leading Brazilian digital bank, informed users that direct cryptocurrency withdrawals and deposits were unavailable because of instability in an external data provider. The company stated the problem did not originate in its internal systems and confirmed that customer assets and personal information remained secure. Other cryptocurrency services, including trading, operated without interruption. Transfers were expected to resume once the third-party service returned to normal.

Mercado Pago, the payments unit of MercadoLibre, reported a parallel issue tied to an incident at a risk-monitoring and anti-money-laundering provider. The firm blocked certain outgoing transfers to external wallets as a precaution. Incoming deposits faced possible delays but would be credited automatically after the service recovered. Buying and selling of virtual assets inside the Mercado Pago app continued as usual.

Neither company identified the specific external screening provider involved. Both said they were working with their vendors to restore full functionality. Public materials associate Nubank with Fireblocks for crypto custody and Mercado Pago with Paxos. These custody arrangements are separate from the screening systems that experienced the outage.

What Remained Available

In-app trading stayed operational on both platforms. Users could still exchange fiat for cryptocurrencies and vice versa within the applications. The suspension applied only to the movement of assets to or from external wallets. This distinction arises because internal trading does not require the same external compliance checks that govern deposits and withdrawals.

Nubank reassured customers that all assets and information remained protected and that other crypto products continued to function normally. Mercado Pago indicated it was monitoring the situation in real time and would notify users when operations normalized.

Role of External Screening Services

Retail cryptocurrency platforms typically separate internal trading infrastructure from the systems that handle external transfers. The latter rely on third-party data feeds for address risk scoring, sanctions screening, and anti-money-laundering checks. When those feeds experience downtime, regulated platforms generally freeze external movements to maintain compliance while allowing internal activity to continue.

The outage therefore left users able to trade within the apps but unable to move holdings freely to self-custody wallets or other venues. Both firms described the freezes as temporary and dependent on restoration of the external screening services.

Social media discussion briefly raised unconfirmed speculation about a possible issue involving a custody provider. Official statements from the companies and available status information did not support claims of a broader security incident. The disruptions followed recent high-profile security events at other regional platforms, contributing to heightened attention around digital asset operations in Latin America.

As of the latest available information, no firm timeline for full restoration had been issued. Nubank and Mercado Pago continued coordination with their respective vendors while keeping in-app trading active for customers.