Brazil Says Bye-Bye to Casino Bonuses and Credit Cards

Despite Brazil's long and storied history of gambling, the hobby was banned in 1946. The ban was spearheaded by the wife of the then president, Eurico Gaspar Dutra, who, thanks to her personal beliefs, hated games of chance.

The one gambling game that avoided being banned was poker, as it was considered a game of skill and, therefore, more socially acceptable.

 The Resurrection of Legal Gambling

With ongoing public pressure and an increasingly virulent underground gambling scene, the government began to ease up on the industry with the approval of non-commercial bingo in 1971, legal betting on horse races in 1984, and the launch of a state-owned national lottery in 1996.

One of the weaknesses of the ban on games of chance was that it was only applied to casino operators based in Brazil. With high-speed internet and a VPN, Brazilian gamblers could still enjoy their favourite slots, dice, and card games at offshore casinos.

With the successes of international online gambling regulators and a large number of players at unlicensed sites, the Brazilian government wrote a new Gaming Act into force in December 2023, legalising online casino entertainment and sports betting.

 Too Much of a Good Thing

Learning from their peers, the Secretariat of Awards and Prizes (SPA) released a framework that addressed the challenges of overspending, indebtedness, and player incentivisation.

With regards to welcome bonuses and promotions, Law No. 14.790 (known as the betting law) clearly stipulates:

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“It is forbidden for the operating agent to grant, in any form, advancement, anticipation, bonus, or previous advantage, even if merely for promotion, dissemination, or advertising, for placing bets.”

Online gambling providers are also now allowed to accept any deposits using credit cards, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, cheques, or cash. The same is true for the payment of withdrawals and the disbursement of prizes via the same channels.

Players may only transact with licensed casinos in Brazil using electronic transfers. All financial providers must also be licensed and approved by the Brazilian Central Bank (BACEN).

 Casinos Must Be Cash Rich

To ensure that players receive the full value of their winnings and refunds on any legally disputed transactions, the SPA has outlined a series of stringent financial controls for licensed casinos and bookmakers.

The official statement says:

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“Licensed operators of the Brazil Bets market must establish methodologies for calculating exposure limits that foresee processes to measure, monitor, and mitigate exposure to liquidity risk and have a contingency plan for additional resource sources.”

Adding:

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“All applicants to the Bets market must guarantee a minimum financial reserve of R$ 5 million (€900,000/$1m), kept in the form of federal public securities in a bank account separate from those used by the betting company.”

While this will limit the number of early market adopters, we applaud the regulator's focus on ensuring fair play, and responsible gambling is at the centre of their evolving market.