Gambling in Brazil: banking federation president wants credit card ban brought forward

Isaac Sidney says the ban should come in before the launch of regulated online gambling in January.

Brazil. – The president of Febraban, the Brazilian banking federation, has called for a planned ban on the use of credit cards for online gambling to be brought forward. Isaac Sidney says the measure should come into effect before the launch of the regulated market in January.

The use of credit cards for gambling in Brazil is to be banned under Ordinance No 615, which was published in April. The ordinance also bans the use of cash, crypto, payment slips and cheques, allowing only electronic money transfers for deposits and withdrawals to and from gambling accounts.

However, the rules will not come into force until the launch of the regulated online gambling market on January 1, 2025. That means that in the current grey market, players can still use credit cards.

Sidney said: “We are very concerned about how much this could compromise family income and increase defaults, even increasing the cost of credit,” he was quoted as saying by Folha.

The instant payment service Pix is the most popular way to deposit funds for gambling in Brazil, and the government has said that it will block payments to unlicensed operators. Other measures under Ordinance No 615 will include a requirement for player and operator accounts will have to be authorised by the Central Bank of Brazil, further restricting the possibility for unlicensed operators to participate in the market.

Meanwhile, Giovanni Rocco Neto has been elected to serve as the first national secretary of Sports Betting for the economic development of sport in Brazil. The new role will involve the coordination and supervision of Brazilian sports’ economic development amid the launch of regulated online gambling from January 2025.

The role will be independent of the new national gambling regulator, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), which is led by Regis Dudena and is currently processing online gambling licence applications from operators. Neto will report to sports minister André Fufuca.