This Tuesday (26), the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry into the Manipulation of Games and Sports Betting (CPIMJAE) will hold a hearing. The objective is to debate the consequences of financial transactions related to sports betting and their impacts on the country’s economy.
The CPI rapporteur, Senator Romário (PL-RJ), will lead the work, with the presence of the chief economist of the National Commerce Confederation (CNC), Felipe Tavares, and the head of the Banking Operations Department of the Central Bank (BC) , Rogério Antônio Lucca.
Initially, the invitation was for the president of the CNC, José Roberto Tadros, and the director of Inspection at the BC, Ailton de Aquino Santos. However, the changes in the calls reflect the urgency of the topics covered.
Impact of betting on commerce and the national economy
Senator Romário highlighted that, in 2023, electronic commerce in Brazil generated R$196 billion, while sports betting exceeded R$240 billion annually.
“These are numbers capable of affecting the performance of the entire tertiary sector in Brazil. This has an impact on defaults, debt, levels of internal savings and the economy’s turnover”, stated Romário. The senator highlighted that the effects on the job market and other impacts are still unknown.
The magnitude of these numbers led the CNC to file a Direct Action of Unconstitutionality (ADI) in the Federal Supreme Court (STF) against the Bets Law (Law 14,790, of 2023).
The Central Bank has difficulties in tracking financial transactions related to betting, as many companies in the sector are not registered with the CNAE, which complicates supervision.
Furthermore, a large part of the values are concentrated in 56 companies with other classifications. This forces the BC to carry out extensive research based on information found on the internet.
In other words, Senator Romário already foresees similar difficulties from January 2025, when the Ministry of Finance’s regulations will come into force. However, the new rules will establish stricter criteria for payment transactions, such as:
- Prohibition of the use of credit cards
- Prohibition of virtual assets and other cryptoassets
In this way, the objective is to make it difficult to use the national financial system to commit crimes related to sports betting.
Game manipulation investigation
In addition to discussions on regulation and inspection, the CPI will also address more serious issues, such as investigations into game manipulation. Therefore, this Tuesday, you will hear:
- Bruno Lopes de Moura, football player investigated in Operation Maximum Penalty, of the Public Ministry of Goiás (MP-GO)
The hearing was scheduled for November 27th, but was brought forward. Evidence points to Bruno Lopes as one of the leaders of a criminal organization specialized in manipulating games and sports betting.
According to senators Romário (PL-RJ) and Jorge Kajuru (PSB-GO), he will have a lot to contribute to the CPI, clarifying:
- The gang’s modus operandi
- Sources of financing
- Player recruitment schemes
“Several cases of active corruption with professional players, aiming to obtain profits from sports betting”, were mentioned in the indictment against the player.
This episode illustrates the complexity of investigations surrounding sports betting. Therefore, there is an urgent need for efficient regulation that prevents the sector from becoming fertile ground for illicit practices, such as:
- Results manipulation
- Financing of criminal organizations.
