By late June 2020,
Colombian land and online- based sector expressed concerns to the government petitioning to reopening casinos and bingo premises in the nation, claiming that over 90 per cent of gaming businesses were facing financial hurdles as a result of strict lockdown measures across Colombia and that over 95 per cent of operators have failed to secure any line of credit throughout the pandemic, risking over 240,000 jobs and prompting several multinational bingo and casino operators to leave the local market.
of April and May, which started to stabilise by July.
Main participators in the lottery industry: Lotería de Bogotá, Cruz Roja, Cundinamarca, Huila, Manizales and Meta initially cancelled their draws for March and April, followed by similar cancellations from the Boyacá, Quindío, Risaralda, Santander, Valle, Tolima and Medellín lotteries. Tis sector estimated an initial COP$50bn (US$12m) monthly losses, which would directly impact income to the health sector which was increasingly needing resources to fund Covid-19 response.
As a result of severe financial impacts to the health sector, President Iván Duque issued Decree 593 of 2020 in which the Government authorised reactivating some land-based operations (particularly sales of lotteries and chance) in order to stabilise the availability of financial resources for the health sector. However, the President clarified that casinos, bingos and video gaming terminals would not be reopened as part of the Decree.
Upon enactment of this Decree, sales of Baloto (an online gaming lottery) increased 50 per cent. Tis particular game provided resources of over COP$16.82bn (US$5m) to the Colombia’s health system. Baloto’s operator itself campaigned with the Colombian People stating that participating in betting games was the “most real and fastest way to help the health sector in Colombia”.
By late June 2020, Colombian land and online-based sector expressed concerns to the government petitioning to reopening casinos and bingo premises in the nation, claiming that over 90 per cent of gaming businesses were facing financial hurdles as a result of strict lockdown measures across Colombia and that over 95 per cent of operators have failed to secure any line of credit throughout the pandemic, risking over 240,000 jobs and prompting several multinational bingo and casino operators to leave the local market. By such date, the sector estimated a COP$135bn
P72 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / MARKET DATA
(USD$41 million) loss in tax contributions with great risks to the Colombian economy and the health sector.
Coljuegos has estimated that there will be a 36 per cent decrease in revenue for exploitation rights for 2020, setting expected total revenue at COP$297.01bn (US$78.1mthe online gaming participants, the regulator estimates a 44 per cent decrease in revenue with total expected revenue set a COP$53.31bn (US$13.9m).
Coljuegos has reacted in a very positive way to face this situation, enacting several amendments to the online regulation, including recent approvals for the live casino vertical, with a very attractive portfolio and conditions to offer these types of games, as recording studios or casino overseas, acceptance of testing labs certifications issued abroad, and a non- restricted list of games permitted to be offered into the vertical.
Coljuegos has also allowed the online operators to promote and sell other novelty games through the operator’s platform, as a sales channel (intermediary) of the authorised operators of those other products. With this measure, Coljuegos has promoted a solidarity approach using less impacted sectors as online, to pull up the sales of most impacted ones.
Finally, Coljuegos tried to amend the legal requirement of the bank account for online operators pursuing a new licence, to reclassify it from a pre contractual to a post contractual requirement, with the idea to facilitate compliance with the banks’ policies that nowadays requires operators to provide a copy of the concession contract to open a bank account, and with a regulation that requires the providing of the bank account to grant the concession, creating an egg and chicken situation. Unfortunately, local associations created a strong opposition against this positive approach from the regulator, causing the amendment to be disregarded.
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