Regis Dudena, Secretary of Prizes and Betting, said that one of the aims of this survey is to monitor the relationship between the companies and the financial institutions authorised by the monetary authority. The Federal Police and Anatel (National Telecommunications Agency) are also bodies that should assist in the process, according to Dudena. They would be responsible for taking down websites that are ilegal in the country. 

The Ministry of Finance hopes to count on the Central Bank to monitor betting shops. 

‘We plan to interact with Anatel, the Federal Police and security departments to ensure that sites that are being made available, that are not on the authorised list, are taken down,’ he said in an interview with a local media. 

Another objective of the secretariat is to map the size of the betting market. Companies authorised to operate in Brazil will need to provide reports and cash flow monitoring should help meet this objective. ‘We're going to have direct contact with these companies and we'll know, in fact, what the size of the financial volumes is, the size of the number of punters who are engaged. So it's only from that moment on that we, as regulators of this sector, will have this exact figure,’ he said. Private sector studies mapping the size of the betting market would not serve as a parameter. 

Another objective of the secretariat is to map the size of the betting market. Companies authorised to operate in Brazil will need to provide reports and cash flow monitoring should help meet this objective. ‘We're going to have direct contact with these companies and we'll know, in fact, what the size of the financial volumes is, the size of the number of punters who are engaged. So it's only from that moment on that we, as regulators of this sector, will have this exact figure,’ he said. Private sector studies mapping the size of the betting market would not serve as a parameter.

The secretary stated that the Treasury's idea is to have its own figure: “It's obvious that there are various estimates and these estimates are often disparate because they consider very different things.”

Integrated actions in other level 

Regis Dudena said that the creation of a working group with the Ministry of Health is in the plans of the betting secretariat. According to him, one of the central themes is the creation of a campaign on gambling addiction. The organisations are considering creating an information booklet on the subject. The idea is for both ministries to exchange information in order to develop joint policies.  ‘This interaction will allow us to receive technical information and use it in our relationship with bookmakers.’

One of the secretary's expectations with the integration is to promote actions linked to the Unified Health System (SUS): ‘It allows us to share our information with the Ministry of Health so that the system can increase its capacity to receive any people with problems [with betting].’ Sports is another ministry seen as a partner of the Betting and Prizes Secretariat. Part of the amount raised by regulating online betting is to be transferred to actions to encourage sporting practices. Of all the money raised, 12 per cent goes to different areas. Of this, 36 per cent is earmarked for sports.

Asked what this transfer would look like and whether there would be any possibility of privileges for certain sports, the secretary passed the ball to the Ministry of Sport. He signalled that the team may eventually think of a way to make the distribution more equal. ‘In reality, how the funds that will be allocated to sport will be used is up to the [Ministry of] Sport. It seems to me that it will make the best possible use of it, including, eventually, making these compensations,’ he said. 

The government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) has two secretariats dedicated to gambling. Understand the difference:

• Secretariat for Prizes and Betting (Ministry of Finance) - handles regulatory matters. The head is Regis Dudena; 
• Secretariat for Sports Betting and the Economic Development of Sport (Ministry of Sport) - takes care of sports integrity. It was created to monitor, for example, the manipulation of results. Its head is Giovanni Rocco Neto.