Senator Izalci Lucas explained that there are cases where foreign groups use Brazilian citizens as frontmen to obtain licenses and called for stricter controls and punishments.
Brazil.- Senator Izalci Lucas drew attention to information published on the Estadão website stating that beneficiaries of programs like Bolsa Família appear as owners of online betting companies. According to the article, foreign groups have used Brazilians as "stingers" (frontmen) to open shell companies.
"The Ministry of Finance, which should be the guardian of the authorization process for these companies, seems more concerned about counting the R$ 30m (USD 5m) charged for each grant than ensuring the suitability of the applicants. The delay in analyzing the applications creates a perfect window of opportunity for scammers to operate with impunity. There is no supervision. When the presence of social program beneficiaries as owners of these companies is verified, all red lights should be turned on. However, what we see are generic speeches about the need to investigate," said the senator.
The parliamentarian stated that the presence of Brazilian "frontmen" in schemes led by foreign groups demonstrates the fragility of national sovereignty. For Izalci, it is unacceptable that a country with technological and human resources allows its legislation and citizens to be manipulated by external interests.
"For the beneficiaries of Bolsa Família who become targets of schemes like this, the message is clear: their poverty is not just a statistic, but an opportunity for profit for the cleverest. And meanwhile, for the rest of society, the warning is even darker: if a system designed to protect the poorest can be so easily corrupted, what about other social and economic protection structures? Outrage, although necessary, is not enough," he said.
See also: Online betting in Brazil: the list of authorized companies will be published in the last fortnight of December
Finally, the Senator said that it will be necessary to move towards some type of reform or regulatory modification that leads to stricter controls. "It is time to demand a structural reform that prioritizes ethics, transparency, and social justice, before the collapse is irreversible. What we see is a scenario without perspective, a devastating portrait of this structural fragility," explained Izalci Lucas.
According to the Estadão media, of 183 applications for registration of betting houses submitted to Sigap, 33 were registered by people who lent their data in exchange for payments or whose names were used irregularly. Those who admitted to having sold their name to foreigners said they received R$ 600 (USD 100) for a company registered in the Ministry of Finance.
