The deadline set by the Ministry of Finance for bettors to withdraw money deposited in unauthorized online betting and gaming sites ends this Thursday (10). Bets not on the list of companies allowed by the Ministry will go offline starting Friday (11). And, when this happens, the user may be prevented from retrieving their funds.
The deadline was announced at the beginning of the month by the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad. The National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) may start the blockages this Friday.
Since the beginning of the year, the federal government has started to set rules to limit the operation of online betting companies in Brazil.
The bets that presented themselves to the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA) via the Betting Management System (Sigap) and that were listed by the SPA will continue operating until December. And, from 2025, only those already within the norm will be authorized to operate.
"Those who did not request accreditation will not be able to operate from now on, they will have 10 days. These 10 days are more for the bettor than for the betting house, because there are many people who have financial resources deposited in the betting house", explained Fernando Haddad at the beginning of the month.
"So, the 10 days are for the person to check if they have a balance and request a refund. Otherwise, we would already take it off the air immediately, but we will not do it to protect the savings of the eventual bettor", said Haddad to journalists.
And who does not redeem in time?
The federal government states that illegal bets have the duty to return to consumers the money deposited in the accounts, even after the sites go offline.
The withdrawal mechanism, however, may become more complicated. The betting houses will have to be responsible for the refund, but the fact that they refused to start the process of adapting to the new legislation is an indication that the withdrawal may be difficult.
The government has not yet announced if it will provide any official channel to assist customers who feel harmed by illegal bets.
Up to 600 sites will go offline
According to the government, about 600 online betting sites will be banned from Brazil in the coming days for presenting irregularities in relation to the legislation approved by the National Congress.
The Ministry of Finance and other executive teams are also working to ban certain forms of payment for online bets, such as credit cards (rarely used on the sites) and also the Bolsa Família card.
Only in August 2024, 5 million beneficiaries of Bolsa Família spent R$ 3 billion on bets according to still uncertain data released by the Central Bank.
The Federal Attorney for Citizens' Rights has already instituted a procedure to verify the impact of online betting on people in situations of social and economic vulnerability.
On another front, at the request of the director-general Andrei Passos, the Federal Police opened a preliminary investigation to investigate the actions of international groups suspected of laundering money in the sports betting market.
Regulation
At the end of last year, Congress approved and the government sanctioned a law that regulates online betting in Brazil.
The regulation brings a series of rules for these companies to operate in the country and stipulates the payment of taxes – which today still does not happen.
Since 2018, bets are authorized in Brazil. But most of these betting sites today are hosted in other countries and offer their services to Brazilians over the internet.
“We will have total control of who the bettors are, what are the means of payment that these bettors are using. We will have very clear rules to combat money laundering", stated Régis Dudena, Secretary of Prizes and Bets of the Ministry of Finance, in an interview with Fantástico at the beginning of the month.
With the regulation, from January 2025 they will have to be hosted in Brazil, which will facilitate supervision, according to the government.
"We also have rules to protect the bettor. We know what is the financial volume that these bettors are spending in the betting houses. They will be monitored and they will be supervised by the Ministry of Finance”, he added.
Source: GMB / g1
