Potential billion industry
Brazilian Senate President Renan Calheiros says Bill 186, which would bring a legal gaming industry to the South American country, will head to the chamber floor next month following approval by the Senate’s Special Committee on National Development. The CDEN approved the original version of the bill last December, at which time senators proposed 16 amendments.
Senator Fernando Bezerra, who sponsored the bill, said the nation’s “archaic vision” on gaming has caused it miss out on “big foreign investors from the tourism sector.” Gambling has been illegal in the country for 70 years. According to the Legal Gaming Institute, it could be R$ 59 billion (US$18 billion) business.
Sergio Jardim, CEO of Clarion Events Brazil, host of the third Brazilian Gaming Congress in São Paulo this month, said there is “prejudice and negative stereotype raised when gaming is discussed. But we must remember that when legalized, the gaming industry represents a source of revenue both for the private sector and the government. Moreover, this industry invests heavily in monitoring technologies to prevent money laundering and other illegal activities associated with various gaming segments.”
