SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
After recent events in Ecuador saw the South American state sink into civil unrest, President Daniel Noboa has decided to withdraw a question on casino regulations from the recently launched public consultation on the country’s prospects.
At the beginning of January, Noboa gave Ecuador’s Constitutional Court 20 days to hand out a public notice on a list of questions regarding security, justice, and employment, of which the last one reviewed the potential launch of a regulated gambling market.
However, due to the unrelated event of drug kingpin Adolfo “Fito” Macías escaping prison on 7 January, a war between Ecuador’s armed forces and the local drug cartels ensued soon after.
Regarding the cancelled consultations on casinos, a press release from the President’s office, translated by SBC Noticias, revealed that all related plans are currently put on pause as resolving the current civil crisis has taken priority.
Furthermore, enquiring about casino regulations at this time will most certainly ramp up political and public tensions due to opposing parties viewing the industry as a legal leverage for drug cartels to gain more power over Ecuador’s streets.
There are, however, clear indications that once the situation in Ecuador normalises, Noboa will once again try to pave the way for regulated casinos and bingo halls in the country, which have been banned since 2011.
As a reminder, Ecuador’s current law strictly prohibits brick-and-mortar casinos and bookmakers. Despite this, there is a loophole for online gambling as no regulations currently exist to ban or allow it.
