Government blocks 10 betting websites and cancels a daily flow of R$ 600 million.
The federal government has forwarded more than 10,000 betting websites to the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) for blocking since last Friday (September 26), when the provisional measure (MP) that banned betting in the country came into effect. The flow of resources to the platforms, which reached R$ 600 million per day before the ban, has been "basically nullified," according to the Minister of Finance, Dario Durigan.
The data was presented this Friday (October 3rd) by Durigan and the Minister of Justice, Wellington César, in a press conference, according to a report by Globo Online. Bettors have until 11:59 PM on Monday (October 5th) to withdraw the funds held on the platforms; R$ 1,453 billion is still awaiting withdrawal, distributed among 28,65 million CPF holders with a positive balance, according to the Ministry of Finance.
The 10,000 websites referred for blocking this week add to the approximately 78,000 that had already been taken down by the previous Friday, according to Durigan. The number of blocked sites has doubled since the previous report. Wellington César detailed the evolution; in the previous press conference, 5.219 websites had been referred; on Thursday (October 2nd), the number reached 8.357; this Friday, it exceeded 10,000.
Anatel forwards the list to internet service providers. Durigan stated that the addresses sent this week should be taken offline "within hours," noting that this information can still be confirmed with the agency.
Account freeze and money laundering investigation
In addition to the websites, the government is acting against the operating companies. The bank accounts of companies that insist on recreating clandestine pages, concentrated in a few financial and payment institutions, are being blocked. The funds will be seized after an administrative process and allocated to public security. Durigan stated that some amounts have already been blocked, but the total is still being finalized with the Central Bank (BC).
The audit identified 48 accounts with balances exceeding R$ 500, supposedly belonging to individuals, which will undergo detailed analysis. Regarding the possibility of money laundering, Durigan did not rule out the hypothesis; "I'm not saying they all are, but there is a movement that differs from the majority of accounts that had funds from betting and may, indeed, be subject to some investigation."
The cases are referred to the National Consumer Secretariat (Senacon), the Secretariat for Digital Rights (Sedigi), and the Federal Police (PF). Wellington César announced the creation of an inspection department within Senacon, also focused on digital currency exchange, fuels, and piracy, and a general coordination unit to combat money laundering within the PF, focusing on the relationship between betting sites and organized crime.
Withdrawals and deadlines for bettors
Withdrawals made since Saturday (September 27), the day after the Provisional Measure came into effect, already total R$ 652,6 million. The total balance in the accounts of authorized companies fell from R$ 2,1 billion last Friday (September 26) to R$ 1,453 billion, a drop of more than 30%, according to data reported by the companies themselves to the Ministry of Finance. About 11 betting houses, responsible for most of these funds, have been providing information to the government.
The refund schedule follows steps defined by the Provisional Measure. Starting October 6th, the websites and apps will cease operations. Between October 7th and 8th, companies must inform financial institutions of any unredeemed balances, broken down by CPF (Brazilian taxpayer ID). From October 9th to 14th, banks will be responsible for the refund. If there is any impediment, starting on the 14th, the funds will be transferred to Caixa Econômica Federal, which will act as the final instance for restitution.
Digital content removal
Between September 25th and October 1st, 10.435 illegal websites were referred for blocking by Ciberlab/Senasp, of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, and by the Prizes and Betting Secretariat, of the Ministry of Finance. On social networks and messaging applications, 3.040 profiles, pages, channels, groups, and servers were identified for which removal was requested from the platforms.
The survey includes;
⇒ 1.974 Facebook pages;
⇒ 375 profiles on Instagram;
⇒ 605 channels, groups and profiles on Telegram;
⇒ 85 profiles on TikTok;
⇒ a server on Discord.
On Telegram, Discord, and TikTok alone, this content reached approximately 3,46 million users. Wellington César reported that the removals prevented about 3,5 million people from being exposed to gambling advertising, a number that does not include those who opted out. In addition, 186 apps available in the Apple and Google app stores were notified to remove the content by October 6th. Eight major platforms, including Google, Meta, YouTube, X, Telegram, TikTok, Kwai, and Discord, were also notified about the removal of betting-related advertising.
The provisional measure still needs to be voted on by Congress. Durigan stated that he had spoken with parliamentary leaders before drafting the text and said that the government is available to defend it. There is no new date for a meeting with football clubs, affected by the end of betting sponsorships, and the Selective Tax bill will not be sent to Congress this Friday (October 3).
