SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Regis Dudena, the President of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), has notified authorities that “all qualified operators” for the launch of Brazil’s forthcoming online gambling market will be announced “by the end of December.”
Yesterday, the SPA published an update notifying stakeholders that it had begun the final administrative procedures for licence applications for the launch of the Bets regime – the federal framework of Brazil’s fixed-odds and online gambling market.
Beginning this week, the SPA and the Ministry of Finance (MF) will notify qualified operators individually, who will be given a 30-day period to fulfil final authorisation requirements.
Qualified operators must pay the SPA an upfront R$30 million (€5m) concession fee to secure their Bets licence.
The SPA will carry out a final inspection of qualified operators to ensure the use of certified platforms and that operators maintain the “necessary capitalisation” to process transactions. Bets licences will only be granted once final authorisations are certified by the SPA.
The update indicates that the SPA is nearing the conclusion of the licensing application period for the Bets regime, which was formally launched on 20 August.
The first phase of applications saw 181 businesses file their interest in Bets licences via the SIGAP management system before the 30 September deadline.
During the licensing window, the Ministry of Finance allowed 93 operators to be active in the market as part of a “transition phase” ahead of the launch of Bets.
In the months following the application phase, the list of operators seeking licences shrank to 113 applicants, to be reviewed by the SPA, including those active in the transition. Notable departures included Betway, Arena Esportiva, and Vera & John.
The SPA remains confident that the Bets market will be launched in January 2025; however, separate developments have delayed the schedule.
Last week, a ruling by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) unanimously approved Senior Minister Luiz Fux’s decision to ban the use of Bolsa Família funds for sports betting.
The Supreme Court ruling mandates that authorities ensure protective measures to prevent funds from welfare programmes, such as Bolsa Família, from being used for gambling. The matter dominates Bets pre-market concerns, as President Lula Da Silva warned senior ministers that he would suspend the market if Bolsa Família funds were not protected from gambling.
Additionally, the Ministry of Finance has initiated a “new collaboration” with the Central Bank of Brazil to strengthen enforcement actions against online gambling operators.
The MF and the Central Bank have requested direct powers to “initiate legal actions, including seizing funds from betting platform accounts to resolve outstanding debts, backed by new regulatory measures.”
Leading the SPA, Regis Dudena reiterated that the Secretariat demands full compliance from day one by licensed operators, upholding the rules and customer protections of the Bets market, which the SPA will regulate with the highest standards.
