What’s behind Brazil’s betting license files?

Brazil’s Ministry of Finance is facing scrutiny after denying access to documents related to the licensing of betting operators, with some information protected under provisions that can restrict disclosure for up to 100 years.

Requests filed under Brazil’s Access to Information Law (LAI) seeking access to authorization records for licensed betting companies were rejected by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA).

The denials cover documents submitted by operators during the licensing process, as well as technical opinions, assessments and internal analyses produced by the regulator.

LAI allows citizens to request information from public bodies, although certain categories of data can be withheld under confidentiality and privacy provisions.

As a result, information regarding the review process, potential deficiencies identified during applications, methods used to pay the BR30m ($5.8m) licensing fee and the ultimate beneficial owners of betting companies remains unavailable to the public.

The Ministry of Finance declined to provide the documents arguing that information relating to shareholders, administrators and beneficial owners is protected under personal data provisions established by the LAI.

In previous responses to similar requests, the regulator also argued that its systems do not currently possess sufficient anonymization mechanisms to safely disclose portions of the requested documents while protecting sensitive information.

The issue emerges as President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has adopted increasingly critical rhetoric toward operators, despite his administration having implemented the regulatory framework that currently governs the sector.

While transparency rules and access policies can change over time through legislative reforms, regulatory updates or future administrative decisions, no changes to the current disclosure framework have been announced by the Federal Government.