Hincapié Ramíres appointed new President of Colombian regulator Coljuegos

Marco Emilio Hincapié Ramírez has been appointed the new President of Coljuegos, Colombia's National Gambling Authority. The naming was announced by the office of President Gustavo Petro and confirmed via a decree published by the governing Colombia Humana Party.

Hincapié Ramírez already has experience in the gambling industry as he was the former General Manager of the Bogota Lottery. He is a magistrate of Colombia's Electoral Council and a former deputy to the Assembly of Tolima.

His public bio describes him as "a lawyer with extensive experience in the public sector; and an expert in developing and managing administrative and electoral norms and procedures, as well as a professional with a great capability for leadership."

President Gustavo Petro (left) and Hincapié Ramírez

His appointment comes amid a complicated year for Coljuegos, which has been embroiled in leadership conflicts and changes. Former Coljuegos President Roger Carrillo Ocampo stepped down amid criticisms toward the governing party, being replaced then by deputy Sammy Libos Zúñiga on an interim basis.

The new appointment seeks to bring stability to Coljuegos, which has seen four separate bosses since the authority's founding President, Juan Pérez Hidalgo, ended his tenure in 2020.

Hincapié Ramírez's tenure also comes at a point in which Coljuegos must set out the process for operating the so-called "Juegos Novedosos" (novelty games), and a modification to Baloto; in addition to laying out the systems for connecting localized games and bingos.