Roll out the red carpet
ANJL welcomes Brazil’s sports-betting ordinance, Colombian draw bonanza, Panama growth +Más
Brazil: Operators told they have ‘sufficient time to adapt’ to new regulations.
In +Más: Enjoy losses, Argentina wi-fi blocking.
Colombia: Chance games generate $95m in prizes.
Panama: Gaming industry grows 2.5% in Q124.
Argentina: Santa Fe denounces 273 illegal gambling websites.
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Brazil ordinance
Hello, good evening and welcome: The National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) of Brazil has welcomed Ordinance SPA/MF No. 827, which establishes the rules and conditions for obtaining authorization to operate sports betting in the country.
The ordinance, published last week by the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA) of the Ministry of Finance of Brazil, meets the market’s expectations and gives “sufficient time to adapt to the requirements” for those who want to legally join the industry, said the ANJL.
The document stipulates only organizations headquartered and managed in the country – including subsidiaries of foreign companies – that meet the requirements established in the betting law and its regulations can participate in the process.
After the watershed: The ANJL specified that December 31 would be a watershed moment for the sector, as it marks the deadline for operators to adapt to the new legislation.
From January 1, 2025, all companies operating in Brazil without SPA authorization will be doing so illegally and may receive sanctions.
And there’s more: The document also determines that the authorization granted to the operator may be “reviewed whenever there is a merger, split, establishment, transformation, or transfer or modification of direct or indirect social control.”
The publication of other ordinances is expected to continue until the end of July, as part of the process of regulating the betting industry in Brazil.
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+Más
Not much to enjoy: The Chilean casino operator Enjoy recorded losses of $28.4m in Q124, 4x the loss recorded in the same period last year. The company blamed the fall on a 60% drop in EBITDA to $4.6m and a 27.7% rise in costs to $22m, as well as forex differences causing a $4m deficit. Revenues remained flat at $104.2m.
Argentina: The government of the City of Buenos Aires has ordered the blocking of online betting sites from school Wi-Fi networks. This comes in response to the growing wave of concern about adolescent participation in online gambling throughout Argentina.
The Peru Gaming Show, to be held on June 12-13, will focus on online gaming regulation, along with the influence of artificial intelligence and the tax regime affecting the industry.
Colombian chance games
Healthy profits: Between January and April 2024, chance draws in Colombia paid out $94.4m in prizes. According to the president of Coljuegos, Marco Emilio Hincapié, this increase in prize payments is due to institutional efforts to strengthen the sector through measures that encourage increased frequency of draws and legality in gaming.
Hincapié explained that, in addition, chance draws “are one of the games that contribute the most resources to the health of Colombians,” and that in the first four months of the year permanent bets had already transferred $26.3m to the health system.
He noted the 15 authorized lottery draws had paid $28.4m in prizes and transferred $20.4 million to the health sector.
In the same period, the Raspa&Listo game paid $12.4m to players and transferred about $13m to the health system.
Keep it legal: Hincapié insisted that “it is worth betting legally” and that “playing at authorized sites not only guarantees the payment of prizes but also ensures that resources are transferred to the health system.”
Panama growth
Canal dreams: The gaming and betting industry in Panama grew 2.5% in the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2023, according to the country’s National Institute of Statistics and Census.
Revenues from racetracks, bingo halls, gaming tables, slot machines, sports-betting rooms and online games of chance and skill rose from $85.5m in Q123 to $87.6m in Q124.
Of these, $29.7m were registered in January, $28m in February and $29.8m in March.
According to data provided by the operators themselves, bets at racetracks exceeded $1.5m, bingo halls $240k, gaming tables $6.5m, type A slot machines $73.8m, sports-betting rooms $1.2m and online gaming $4.2m.
Slot machines accounted for more than 84% of the total.
Despite the improvement in the sector’s performance, lottery sales (chances and tickets) fell 12.7% to $34.3m from $39.3m the previous year.
Santa Fe denounces websites
Blockbuster: The government of the Argentine province of Santa Fe has denounced 273 websites “that allow illegal betting” to the Public Ministry for the alleged crimes of exploitation, administration and operation of games of chance to the detriment of the provincial administration and requested their blocking and the seizure of their bank accounts.
The government does not have precise data on the number of people using these sites, but it is certain that among them are many minors, who have no restrictions on accessing these sites, which also “allow this interaction without limits.”
It is estimated that the number of minors betting online has increased exponentially since the pandemic and consolidated during the Qatar World Cup.
Trouble is coming: “The temptation to earn money with a couple of clicks can have negative effects on the physical and mental health of children and adolescents,” said Daniel Di Lena, executive vice-president of the Social Assistance Fund-Lottery of Santa Fe (CAS).
“The proliferation of these unregistered platforms is driven by a strong advertising campaign that includes several influencers directly targeting young people, who are the main consumers of their content.”
If a site does not have a ‘.bet.ar’ domain, it is illegal.
It is estimated that illegal gambling represents about 80% of online gambling, causing an economic loss estimated at around $2.24m per month.
Calendar
June 12-13: Peru Gaming Show 2024, Lima
Publication schedule
This is the English version of the LosIngresos+Mas newsletter published yesterday (May 29).
An +More Media publication.
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