Brazilian Federal Court Votes to Ban Loterj’s Nationwide Activities
The Brazilian Supreme Federal Court (STF) has upheld a preliminary injunction against the country’s Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (Loterj) blocking its ability to operate nationwide.
Loterj had claimed that Accreditation Notice 01/2023 allowed its licensees to operate public lottery services throughout Brazil. The STF has now upheld a minister’s view that Loterj does not have the right to license brands outside of Rio de Janeiro.
Brazilian minister André Mendonça passed a preliminary injunction Jan. 2 that banned Loterj’s nationwide activities. The STF has upheld that injunction.
Additionally, the injunction also mandated the use of geolocation tracking technology to ensure licensees were only offering bets within Rio de Janeiro state borders.
Stake to Credit Colombian Players with VAT Bonuses
Stake Colombia intends to credit players back any value-added tax (VAT) that they paid when submitting deposits with the operator.
Under a cashback individual voluntary arrangement promotion, Stake will credit users with the VAT amount taken from their submitted deposits under the new measure enforced in the market in February.
Stake Colombia, which entered Colombia’s licensed market in 2023, said it did not want the tax to impact players’ experience with Stake due to being taxed by the state.
“That’s why we have to adapt to the government’s measure regarding the 19 percent tax and comply with the required deadlines,” Stake general country manager in LatAm Diana Otálora said.
“Therefore, we are adopting internal measures so that our customers can continue playing without being affected by this situation.”
Codere Online Posts 2024 Growth, Struggles with Argentina Penetration
In its full-year results, operator Codere Online reported growth in its core markets. However, it said it had struggled to fully penetrate the target market of Argentina.
Codere Online has reported today Feb. 20, for the year ended Dec. 31, a total net gaming revenue of $221.4 million, up 23 percent year-on-year.
The operator posted an adjusted EBITDA of €6.4 million, up 18.1 percent year-on-year. The company saw its average monthly active players increase by 13 percent in the 12 month period to 144,900.
Codere Online’s revenue in Mexico was up 30 percent year-on-year to $111 million.
Speaking to analysts during the group’s earnings call, CEO Aviv Sher said: “I don’t know why, but I think some of the competitors have slowed down their investment a little bit in the fourth quarter and we are enjoying it.
“Probably they saw success in other markets in LatAm and I think right now they lost a little bit of focus into this Mexico market a little bit.”
Curaçao Rolls Out Dispute Resolution to Prevent Player Court Cases
The Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) has asked operators to submit their feedback to the regulator about its proposed alternative dispute resolution (ADR) policy.
The ADR public consultation has been set to run until March 8.
Licensed operators are required to provide ADR services to players, under a new National Ordinance for Games of Chance (LOK) gambling policy in Curaçao to help prevent player disputes from escalating to court.
It will be a requirement for ADR divisions to operate standalone websites for players to access outside of the operator’s products. Additionally, the entity must be based on the island of Curaçao.
Brazil Betting Operators Required to Submit AML Policies by March 17
Operators in Brazil have been given until March 17 to submit their anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) policies to government agency The Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA).
As of Feb. 27, 43 operators now have full authorization to operate in Brazil, eight received definitive licenses earlier this month.
The submitted CTF and AML policies need to be an in-depth overview of an operator’s planned actions addressing different scenarios.
Failing to correctly provide the CTF and AML policies, or not taking action to prevent financial crimes, could result in sanctions.
