Ministry of Finance publishes new rules for betting in Brazil

The Ministry of Finance has published an Ordinance aimed at regulating the betting and gaming market in Brazil. Ordinance SPA/MF No. 1,143, released in the Official Gazette last Friday (12), is part of a set of measures designed to establish guidelines for the control and supervision of financial operations in the country.

 The regulation reinforces the importance of compliance with current legal norms, such as Law 14,790 of December 2023, known as the “Sports Betting Law”, and generally imposes additional obligations on betting operators regarding user identity verification, monitoring of suspicious transactions, and reporting of unusual operations to competent authorities. Furthermore, it seeks to enhance international cooperation in the exchange of financial information to increase the effectiveness of adopted control measures.

Key points highlighted in the Ordinance include the requirement for operators to implement policies to identify and assess the risk of their users, covering all groups involved in fixed-odds betting operations, including employees, collaborators, suppliers, and third-party service providers. According to the Ordinance, the qualification of bettors includes evaluating the compatibility between their economic and financial capacity and the betting operations they conduct, as well as checking if they are politically exposed persons. Additionally, risk qualification must be kept updated by operators regularly, considering potential changes in user profiles.

Additionally, criteria are established for reporting suspicious operations to the Financial Activities Control Board (COAF), as well as the mandatory submission of annual reports detailing the implementation by operators of the provisions set forth in the Ordinance.

The Ordinance also introduces innovations for the betting sector, including the adoption of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and compliance policies (adherence to legal norms), establishing a direct connection with Law 12,846, better known as the Anti-Corruption Law.

As mentioned, the Ordinance is part of a set of regulations aimed at regulating the national market, being the fifth regulation of a series of eleven regulatory measures planned for the 2024 regulatory agenda.

Our team is closely monitoring all discussions on the topic and the betting market, as well as its impacts on the Brazilian scenario.

If you have any questions or additional clarification, don’t hesitate to contact our team at the following emails: felipe.monteiro@kasznarleonardos.com and isabel.cautiero@kasznarleonardos.com.