According to Felipe Crisafulli, partner at Ambiel Bonilha Advogados and member of the Gaming, Betting, and Responsible Gaming Law Committee of the São Paulo Bar Association (OAB/SP), Caixa strictly followed the guidelines of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), which is linked to the Ministry of Finance and is responsible for regulating the matter.
"Caixa Loterias S.A. expressed preliminary interest in becoming a fixed-odds betting operator back in mid-2023, even before the regulatory criteria were defined. On August 20 of last year, the company submitted its application for authorization, in accordance with the procedures established by the Federal Government, through the SPA. On July 30 of this year, the authorization was granted. Therefore, the company participated in all stages and complied with the legal and regulatory requirements to operate in the Brazilian betting market," he explains.
On the eve of the system finally going into operation, however, the President of the Republic came out publicly to express his opposition to Caixa acting as a fixed-odds betting operator.
"Lula's statement is, at the very least, unfortunate and untimely: it was his government that created the SPA, Caixa met all the requirements established by the Secretariat, and yet the company shouldn't participate in this sector of the Brazilian economy? On what basis? What's the justification? Shouldn't the president have expressed himself this way, especially in public, over the past few months, given that Caixa has been making its intentions clear for at least two years?" ponders Crisafulli.
The expert points out that Caixa is responsible for managing and providing lottery services, in addition to being a financial institution that supports the implementation of Federal Government policies. In this context, Crisafulli questions the reasonableness of the measure given Caixa's Bylaws and the interests of society.
"More than natural, it is truly essential that Caixa participate in this market, both due to the significant volume of money it moves, directly and indirectly, and as an instrument to help strengthen and raise awareness of legal and regulatory requirements, especially those related to Responsible Gaming and pathological gambling."
Source: GMB
