Brazil gambling regulator suspends several licences over cybersecurity compliance failings
The SPA says the operators could face fines if they fail to comply.
Brazil.- The Brazilian gambling regulator, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), has suspended the licences of at least four operators in its most severe enforcement action to date since the launch of regulated online gambling in Brazil at the start of the year. The regulator says the operators failed to submit mandatory cybersecurity reports within the timeframe established in Article 8 of Ordinance SPA/MF No. 722/2024.
The platforms affected have been prohibited from offering betting, processing deposits or onboarding new users until they achieve compliance with the regulator’s cybersecurity standards. The SPA warned that continued non-compliance could result in daily fines of R$40,000, further penalties, or permanent licence revocation.
Initially seven operators were listed as having had their licences suspended. At the time of writing, the SPA website listed four, including BETesporte, which sponsors state football championships in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The other three operators listed are Bell Ventures Digital (bandbet.bet.br), Logame do Brasil (lider.bet.br, geralbet.bet.br and b2x.bet.br and SorteNaBet Gaming Brasil (sortenabet.bet.br, betou.bet.br, betfusion.bet.br).
The Ministry of Finance said the enforcement action was intended to uphold regulatory integrity and safeguard consumers by ensuring that licensed operators ensure robust cybersecurity measures.
The move comes as gambling operators and Braziliand football clubs oppose senator Styvenson Valentim’s (PSDB-RN) Bill 2,985/2023, which aims to restrict online betting advertising in Brazil.
The Senate Sports Committee (CEsp) has advanced the proposal, which would prohibit athletes, artists and influencers from advertising betting via any media outlet and restrict the broadcasting of gamblng advertising to between 7.30pm and midnight with an exception for advertising broadcast live in the 15 minutes before the start of the match and in the 15 minutes after the end of the game. Radio advertising would be allowed in two periods: from 9am to 11am and from 5pm to 7.30pm.
Other measures in the bill include a ban on displaying odds in real time during the live broadcasts and on promoting bets on referees and other members of the refereeing team. Operators would be prohibited from using content aimed at children and young people and from advertising fixed-odds bets in stadiums, with an exception to allow naming rights.
