The data are part of the Gmattos Payments Study, which considered 10 of the main bookmakers operating in Brazil and indicate that pix - which in Brazilians' daily lives is the most payment method used and last year alone accounted for 29% of all financial transactions carried out in the country - also leverages operations in the betting market, precisely because of its characteristics.
In the report, Gastão Mattos, co-founder and general director of Gmattos Consultoria explains that, as a general rule, these houses need to confirm the immediate liquidity of the deposit made by the client. In this way, the instant payment method becomes ideal as it is a cash transfer, serving both for depositing amounts to bet and for receiving any winnings.
"It is a type of payment that perfectly fits the needs of the operation, with usability, high conversion and cash settlement. In the current trend, movements in this type of operation will grow more than four times in 2023, compared to the previous year."
The high penetration of the use of the pix among the target audience also accounts for this, as a reflection of a greater movement verified since the end of 2020. According to the Banking Economy Report, by the Central Bank in 2022, the growth of use of pix reduced, in relative terms, the participation of other means of payment and transfer in the total number of financial transactions. In terms of financial volume, the share of pix was 12%.
In second place in the preference of this market are the wallets (digital), which serve both to make a deposit as a bet and eventually to receive prizes. As most of this service is not local, they also end up operating via pix, in addition to transfer and cards in some cases.
The report also highlights the difficulties in using payment methods, such as the low conversion rate and the high risk of fraud in the case of wallets or credit cards. When using a card for charging, there is also an incidence of the exchange for another currency, which ends up discouraging the operation.
“As betting sites cannot operate directly in the country, intermediaries are hired to process the pix and other types of payment, with the remittance of amounts abroad. It is a high-volume business, with the need for payment operations and licenses for exchange remittances," highlights the publication.
It is worth remembering that betting sites were targeted by the Federal Government, in the discussions of the new fiscal framework, to raise estimated revenues between R$ 12 billion (US$ 2.45b) and R$ 15 billion (US$ 3.1b).
The matter was the subject of a public hearing at the House Finance and Taxation Committee. At the meeting, the special adviser to the Ministry of Finance, José Francisco Manssur, informed that, in order to operate in Brazil, bookmakers must be registered in the country, have Brazilian employees and have a share capital of at least R$ 100,000 (US$ 20,500). In addition, they will have to pay R$ 30 million (US$ 6.17m) for the five-year operating license and pay 15% tax on profits.
A law published in 2018 allowed online betting on sports results, but there was no regulation of this activity, which prevents it from being taxed today. Companies do not have a CNPJ registered in Brazil, for example, and taxation is levied only on financial transactions (mediated by banks).
Despite the signs, there is still no definition of when the regulation will be ready and what the direct impact on bettors will be. With the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) in progress, the Ministry of Finance opted to wait for the development of the works to evaluate possible recommendations for the text to be presented.
Source: Valor Investe
