Interactive
Colombia – Coljuegos grants 12th licence to Royal Betting Solutions
By Phil - 9 July 2018
Colombian gaming regulator Coljuegos has granted the 12 licence to operate online sports betting to Royal Betting Solutions S.A.S.
The granting of the new licence means that the number of online operators in Colombia has now reached 12. According to the Head of Coljuegos Juan B. Pérez Hidalgo there are now around 870,000 active registered online players – an increase of 35 per cent since the start of the World Cup.
“The most important football event has allowed online bets to continue to show their power in the country. . . .Colombians, since the start of the operation of authorised online gambling sites (July 2017), have bet more than $500,000 million, with deposits averaging $20,000, through the authorised and active pages to date, and we have identified the five cities where these types of bets are made the most: Bogotá DC, Neiva, Villavicencio, Florencia and Ibagué,” he said.
Hidalgo added that the board had also been able to gather a more complete online player profile. According to its analysis 85 per cent of the players are men, aged between 18 and 40 years old. Hidalgo once again expressed his belief that 17 online operators would licensed by the end of 2018.
“According to online gaming regulations operators must ensure that out of 100 per cent of the income they receive from bets that they will give in prizes the equivalent of 83 per cent to their registered players. So far the highest award given by the operators has been $70 million, to a player who made a bet of $49,000.”
Royal Betting Solutions is a Colombian company, made up of a group of entrepreneurs from activities such as construction, commerce and services, with a business relationship spanning more than 15 years.
In June Coljuegos granted the 11th online licence to Italian operator HBG Gaming’s local subsidiary HBG Latam.
Online gaming laws in Colombia began to be tightened after legislation was passed in 2016. According to new regulations, operators granted a licence must adhere to a number of strict obligations and meet the technical requirements as per the terms granted to it by the state. Meanwhile, Coljuegos with the help of the National Police has continued to manage the blocking of unauthorised web pages strengthening the sector further.
In addition it has continued to tackle illegal land based gaming. In June the Colombian National Police along with the gaming regulator launched a major operation in the city of Barranquilla and the municipalities of Jericó Rionegro and La Unión (the Department of Antioquia), Bugalagrande (the Department of Valle del Cauca) and Aguachica (the Department of Cesar). In all police were able to seize 1178 pieces of illegal gaming equipment that were found to be operating illegally in 10 establishments.
