According to Brazilian media, the Brazilian Ministry of Finance has issued new regulations, prohibiting financial institutions and payment platforms from providing account services to unauthorized fixed-odds betting companies, to strengthen the regulation of the industry and combat illegal operators.
The regulation was signed by Regis Dudena, head of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (Secretaria de Prêmios e Apostas) of the Ministry of Finance. According to the new rules, financial institutions must report any suspected illegal gambling operations to the department within 24 hours, and provide the business CNPJ registration number, company name, and specific reasons for suspicion.
The Ministry of Finance revealed in a statement that in February this year, the secretariat had issued warnings to 22 financial and payment institutions, stating that their accounts were being used by illegal gambling operators.
"The new regulations, combined with the blocking measures against illegal websites and advertisements, will further combat unlicensed gambling enterprises and protect the legitimate rights and interests of gamblers," Dudena said. The measure aims to cut off the flow of funds to illegal gambling websites and prevent them from causing damage to the economy and personal finances.
It is reported that Brazil's online gambling market was officially regulated on January 1. However, in January alone, the Ministry of Finance had already blocked 9600 unauthorized gambling websites that were operating illegally in Brazil. The secretariat is working with the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) to continuously block unlicensed gambling platforms.
Brazil's sports betting was first approved at the end of the Michel Temer administration and was legalized by Congress. However, during the Jair Bolsonaro administration, the industry was not effectively regulated, leading to a large influx of gambling companies, most of which are headquartered in overseas tax havens, unregulated and untaxed, leaving the industry in a gray area for a long time.
In 2023, the Lula administration submitted new regulations to Congress to promote the regularization of the gambling industry. After the regulations were passed, the Ministry of Finance intensified the development of related regulatory measures, which officially took effect on January 1 this year.
According to the new regulations, only enterprises licensed by the federal government can provide gambling services in Brazil. The license fee is 30 million reais, with a validity period of 5 years, and each licensed enterprise can register up to 3 operating websites.
