Head of Brazilian gaming board advocates for strict casino regulation as Congress considers advertising ban
The Secretary of Prizes and Betting (SPA) of the Ministry of Finance, Regis Dudena, has said that if Congress approves the legalization of physical casinos, it will be necessary to ensure that the new market is “rigorously regulated before it starts operating.” Talking to Brazilian magazine Exame according to Dudena, it will be the SPA’s responsibility to establish the rules should land based casinos be given the go ahead.
“Regarding the legalization of physical casinos, the bill currently under discussion stipulates that the responsibility for regulation will belong to the Ministry of Finance, and there has already been an amendment to designate this as our responsibility [SPA]. Our expectation is that once the bill is approved, it will be regulated by the Secretariat. For us, the most important thing is to ensure that any new market, such as that of casinos, is rigorously regulated before it begins to operate. The experience from 2019 to 2022 taught us that we cannot rush the process. We need time to create clear and detailed rules to ensure a safe and well-structured market,” he said.
During the interview Dudena also talked about some of the measures the board has taken against illegal gambling and said that the SPA had closed over 11,000 illegal websites since the start of the year.
Dudena also talked about the proposed ban on betting advertisements currently being discussed in Congress and argued that a complete ban on advertising could lead to the public losing the ability to identify authorized companies. Advertising plays a crucial role in helping consumers distinguish between legal businesses he said. The proposals to prohibit betting advertising (PL 2985/2023), and to ban athletes and celebrities from promoting sports betting platforms (PL 3405/2023) were discussed in a public hearing held by the Sports Commission (CEsp) last month.
