Brazil investigates Google for possible manipulation in the dollar exchange rate

AGU determines difference of R$0.20 in the Google dollar and activates BC after quote displayed on holiday differs from the last official closing

The Attorney General’s Office (AGU) sent, this Wednesday (25), a letter to the Central Bank of Brazil requesting information about the exchange rate of the dollar during this holiday. The data sent by Bacen will support possible action by the Federal Attorney General’s Office, an AGU body, in relation to the Google search engine, which presented this Wednesday (25) the dollar exchange rate at R$ 6.38, a value of R$ 0, 20 higher than that recorded at the last official closing (23).

After AGU’s action, through the issuance of an official letter with the request for information to Bacen, Google no longer displays the price of R$ 6.38 as a result in searches carried out by users.

“The actions of the Attorney General of the Union aim to combat misinformation regarding economic data of great relevance to Brazilian society”, highlights the Attorney General of the Union, Jorge Messias.

“Recently, information from unknown sources about the real exchange rate of the dollar was again published on the Google platform. The Ptax exchange rate is the official exchange rate in Brazil, not defined this Wednesday by the Central Bank due to the holiday”, he adds.

In the request sent to Bacen, the AGU aims to clarify any inconsistencies in the value presented on the digital platform, as the last closing recorded the dollar quoted at R$ 6.18.

“In fact, it is surprising that, during the holiday of 12/25, a date without Ptax, there is a disparity in information related to the exchange rate of said currency”, highlights the AGU document sent to the Central Bank.

Through the document sent by AGU, for which there is a sign of urgency in the response, information such as the exchange rate of the dollar in Brazil this Wednesday, 12/25 is requested from the Central Bank; value of US currency in other countries on the same date; as well as whether the exchange rate in other countries may impact the value of the Brazilian currency on the holiday.

With information from AGU*