✓ verbatim from the press ◦ composed from multiple sources ? no verbatim passage
Fifty search and seizure warrants were executed on June 19, 2026 against PicPay, Banco de Brasília (BRB), and the DF Secretary of Economy, in an investigation by the Federal District Public Prosecutor's Office (MPDFT) into irregular deductions from DF civil servants' payroll that allegedly exceeded R$ 80 million. MPDFT alleges that the "salary advance without cost to the Federal District" product, offered by Conta PicPay and Cartão Benefício, functioned as a credit operation charging disguised financial fees, reaching effective annual rates exceeding 261% in some cases, with deductions jumping from R$ 11.7 million in 2024 to over R$ 70 million by August 2025. ✓
Press quotes (4)
"Uma operação do Ministério Público, deflagrada na manhã desta sexta-feira (19), investiga descontos irregulares na folha de pagamento de servidores do governo do Distrito Federal. Entre os alvos, estão o Banco de Brasília (BRB) — responsável pelos pagamentos —, a Secretaria de Economia do DF, o Instituto de Previdência dos Servidores do DF (Iprev), a empresa PicPay e a Associação dos Servidores Públicos do DF."
"O esquema teria sido estruturado em duas frentes. A primeira envolve o produto denominado "antecipação salarial, sem ônus para o Distrito Federal", ofertado pela Conta PicPay e pelo Cartão Benefício. De acordo com o MPDFT, há indícios de que a modalidade tenha funcionado como operação de crédito com cobrança de encargos financeiros, embora tenha sido apresentada como serviço sem juros. Os descontos vinculados ao produto ultrapassaram a cifra de R$ 80 milhões. Em 2024, os valores dos empréstimos a título de "antecipação salarial" descontados eram de R$ 11,7 milhões. Até agosto de 2025, a cifra saltou para mais de R$ 70 milhões mediante a cobrança de juros...os percentuais cobrados teriam alcançado, em alguns casos, taxa efetiva anualizada superior a 261% ao ano."
"De acordo com o G1, o esquema consistia em descontos indevidos, disfarçados de taxas, na folha de pagamento de servidores distritais, com um total de mais de R$80 milhões retirados compulsoriamente dos contracheques dos servidores."
"Supostas contribuições associativas podem ter sido utilizadas para mascarar o pagamento de empréstimos concedidos com juros abusivos e à margem do sistema financeiro. Os indícios foram identificados pelos auditores da Cage durante análise iniciada em fevereiro deste ano [...] des"
The investigation, named Operation Juro Zero, also examines a second front: deductions made in favor of the Federal District Civil Servants Association (ASDF) and related companies (JR Serviços, Peak, Vemcard), which allegedly offered credit via payroll deductions linked to benefit and health codes, with possible irregularities in the use of these categories and unauthorized charges to civil servants. MPDFT cites among possible crimes under investigation active and passive corruption, false data insertion in computer systems, money laundering, crimes against the popular economy, crimes against consumer relations, and criminal organization. Among the warrant targets are PicPay CEO Eduardo Chedid Simões, former BRB president Paulo Henrique Costa — arrested since April 2026 in Operation Compliance Zero investigating Banco Master —, BRB Serviços subsidiary, and civil servant associations. ?
Press quotes (3)
"A segunda frente investigada envolve descontos realizados em favor da Associação dos Servidores Públicos do Distrito Federal (ASDF) e de empresas a ela relacionadas...o MPDFT apura possíveis irregularidades na utilização dessas rubricas e a existência de cobranças sem autorização válida dos servidores"
"Entre os possíveis crimes investigados estão corrupção ativa e passiva, inserção de dados falsos em sistemas informatizados, lavagem de dinheiro, crimes contra a economia popular, crimes contra as relações de consumo e organização criminosa."
"Entre os alvos dos 50 mandados judiciais de busca e apreensão que estão sendo cumpridos em Brasília (DF), Curitiba (PR) e São Paulo (SP), estão o banco digital PicPay e seu presidente-executivo, Eduardo Chedid Simões, além do Banco de Brasília (BRB), instituição financeira estatal cujo maior acionista é o Governo do Distrito Federal (GDF). Também são alvos dos mandados expedidos pelo Conselho Especial do Tribunal de Justiça do Distrito Federal e Territórios (TJDFT), a Secretaria de Economia do Distrito Federal, associações de servidores e pessoas físicas, incluindo o ex-presidente do BRB, Paulo Henrique Costa."
PicPay denied irregularities and stated that the advance amount was made available on the client's own card, after a request made by the civil servant in the app, without intermediaries or associations and without charges in this modality, guaranteeing that its products comply with current regulations and are subject to rigorous control mechanisms. BRB reported that the investigation target is not the bank but BRB Serviços, a conglomerate company with its own tax ID whose activities relate to managing a technology platform for payroll deduction operations, and that the institution has no direct responsibility for third-party loan origination, does not participate in operation contracting, and is not responsible for defining or executing deductions. ◦
Press quotes (2)
"O valor antecipado era disponibilizado no próprio cartão do cliente, depois de feita a solicitação por ele [servidor] mesmo, no aplicativo, sem intermediários ou associações e sem cobrança nessa modalidade"
"Em nota, o BRB informou que o alvo das investigações do MPDFT não é o banco, mas sim a BRB Serviços, "empresa que integra o conglomerado, mas que possui atribuições e CNPJ" próprios e cuja atuação "está relacionada à gestão de plataforma tecnológica destinada exclusivamente à operacionalização de descontos em folha". A instituição não tem nenhuma responsabilidade direta pela concessão dos empréstimos de terceiros, não participa da contratação das operações, nem é responsável pela definição ou execução dos descontos realizados."
The contractual arrangement involves Termo de Compromisso 01/2024, signed by the Secretary of Economy and PicPay in September 2024 with a two-year term, after amendment of Decree No. 28,195/2007 in August 2024; the Secretary of Economy transferred operational responsibility and control of payroll deductions to BRB Serviços, according to an inspection by the Federal District Court of Accounts. The Secretary of Economy stated that the agreements under suspicion were signed in previous administrations and that the investigation targets the conduct of public agents, not the institutional performance of the office, guaranteeing cooperation with investigations. ?
Press quotes (1)
"O Termo de Compromisso 01/2024, da Secretaria de Economia e do PicPay, foi assinado no mês seguinte à alteração da lei, em setembro de 2024, com vigência de 2 anos. Apesar de ser o órgão gestor da folha de pagamento dos servidores, a pasta transferiu a responsabilidade operacional e o controle à BRB Serviços."
MPDFT Operation Juro Zero executed 50 search and seizure warrants on June 19, 2026 against PicPay, BRB, DF Secretary of Economy and civil servant associations
Covered by only some sources, or where the accounts diverge.
Covered by only some sources (2)
Similar scheme was investigated by Rio Grande do Sul Public Prosecutor's Office in 2025, affecting 243 inactive civil servants with R$ 1.5 million deducted under alleged associative contributions masking loans with abusive interest rates
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What is the case number and which court/prosecutor's office is conducting the investigation?
Why it's still unknown: MPDFT did not disclose the case number. The official operation notice mentions warrants issued by TJDFT Special Council but does not identify the specific case. Attempted retrieval from TJDFT public database returned no indexed result as of June 20, 2026.
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Has MPDFT already filed formal charges (criminal complaint) against the investigated individuals, or is the operation still in the inquiry phase?
Why it's still unknown: Consulted sources refer to the operation as "investigation" and "examination," without mentioning filing of charges. Legal-researcher FactCard indicates formal charges were not located in TJDFT or MPDFT public databases as of June 20, 2026.
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How many DF civil servants were affected by the alleged irregular deductions?
Why it's still unknown: MPDFT disclosed the total financial volume (R$ 80 million) but not the number of affected civil servants. No consulted source presents this metric.
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Does the alleged 261% annual effective rate refer to what specific period and how many contracts?
Why it's still unknown: MPDFT note mentions that "the percentages charged allegedly reached, in some cases, an annualized effective rate exceeding 261% per year," but does not specify how many cases, in what exact period, nor provides statistical distribution of rates charged.
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What is the Federal District government's (Executive) position on the alleged scheme?
Why it's still unknown: The Secretary of Economy only stated collaboration with investigations and affirmed that contracts under suspicion were signed in previous administrations. No statement from the governor or Civil House was released as of June 20, 2026.