Brazil has prohibited advertising all bonuses and promotions for gambling companies in a last-minute crackdown. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

Bonus advertising banned

Brazil has banned the advertising of all customer incentives for gambling companies, including bonuses and sign-up offers.

SENACON, the National Consumer Secretariat of Brazil, issued the order, which excludes all bonuses from existing gambling regulations. The regulator also required the suspension of any gambling activities targeted at children or adolescents.

A BRL50,000 ($8,659) fine will be levied each day for any companies in breach of the order.

Operators will have just ten days to submit a transparency report laying out the measures taken to comply with the order. A BRL50,000 ($8,659) fine will be levied each day for any companies in breach of the order.

Regulated market imminent

Brazil has made detailed plans in recent months to regulate the gambling sector and replace the current gray market with a new regulated one, which is set to launch on January 1, 2025. The move was heralded as a change to increase tax revenues and stop unlicensed operators from running operations in the country.

However, since the plans were finalized, there has been alarm at an explosion of money spent on gambling sites, as well as a growing number of Brazilians experiencing issues with addiction. There have also been additional concerns about the economic impact on the country.

it is being eaten up by the bets instead of going into the real economy.”

Renato Meirelles, head of consumer research group the Locomotivo Institute stated: “money would normally go to the neighborhood shopkeeper and boost the economy from the bottom up. Now it is being eaten up by the bets instead of going into the real economy.”

Gabriel Galipolo, who is set to take over as the governor of Brazil’s central bank, also raised concerns, saying: “Even major banks are discussing why the recent growth in income is not reflected in the growth of savings or consumption, and may be leaking into this type of activity, into gambling.”

Frantic crackdown 

The move to ban advertising of gambling bonuses is part of a general last-minute crackdown ahead of the launch of the legal market.

Last week, the Brazilian Supreme Court also hosted a hearing to determine whether the launch of the new market could be unconstitutional. One of the outcomes was to prohibit gambling using Bolsa Familia welfare checks.

the total number of betting sites restricted in the country now stands at over 5,000

Furthermore, last month, the Brazilian telecoms agency Anatel blocked a further swathe of operators, meaning the total number of betting sites restricted in the country now stands at over 5,000.

As a result, according to SENACON, the new measures have been introduced in order to ensure “the safety of vulnerable people in the consumer relationship, with special attention to hyper-vulnerable people such as children and adolescents”.