Brazil Finance Minister says betting rules should be tightened like cigarette controls

Brazil Finance Minister Dario Durigan has called for tighter controls on betting companies, arguing that the sector’s expansion in Brazil requires stronger regulation, higher taxation and stricter advertising limits.

In an interview with UOL News last week, Durigan said the growth of betting companies had become a concern for the government. He said betting should be approached in a similar way to products that carry social and economic risks.

“We need to treat bets the same way we treat cigarettes. As it is bad for health [and] it is bad for Brazilians’ pockets, we have to tighten regulations”, he decreed in the interview.

Durigan’s comments come after President Lula had previously supported a ban on betting. The finance minister said he shares concerns about the sector but warned that a full prohibition could drive activity into illegal channels.

The minister said the government’s objective is to regulate betting. He argued that betting companies have become part of Brazil’s economy and should therefore contribute through taxation.

Durigan also said operators cannot enter the Brazilian market without following domestic rules. “It’s not enough for these companies to enter the country and not obey Brazilian rules,” he said.

According to the minister, parts of the economy have become dependent on betting companies, while previous administrations gave the sector significant weight in the national economy. He said the current government has moved to tighten oversight and that regulation must be firm enough to limit the growth of the illicit market.

Durigan said the government must be “very tough” in its regulation of betting companies. He linked that position to the need to improve controls, raise taxation and restrict advertising in an effort to contain the sector’s expansion in Brazil.

The finance minister also addressed questions over transparency after a Freedom of Information Act request concerning betting company data was refused. Durigan said the refusal was related to the personal data that would have been required to respond to the request, not to any attempt to withhold information about the sector.

“There is no secrecy whatsoever,” Durigan said, regarding the regulation of the sector.

He said the government has asked the CGU, the Comptroller General of the Union, to support a process for reviewing cases that have already passed through the department and proactively disclosing data, rather than handling the issue only through individual requests.