After Palácio do Planalto demands explanations, the president of Caixa Econômica Federal, Carlos Vieira, will present to President Lula, next week, the reasons behind the public bank’s project to create its own bet, an online betting platform.
The meeting should take place next week, as soon as Lula returns from his trip to Asia.
Behind the scenes, one of the bank’s arguments is that part of the bets are placed on foreign websites, which are not authorized to operate and which do not pay taxes in the country.
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Caixa’s project aims to attract this market, with clear rules, generate revenue and offer security to bettors, say interlocutors of the bank’s president. The proposal was approved by the Ministry of Finance — this analysis, however, does not go into political merit, only formal and technical aspects.
Caixa calculates that its bet could result in revenue of R$2.5 billion in 2026 for the bank, its first year of operation.
The bank also maintains, behind the scenes, that lottery revenue fell by 50% after bets. As a result, the government itself lost revenue, as 48% of gross revenue is transferred to public coffers.
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Caixa’s intention was to launch betting in the first half of 2024, but the plan was postponed pending regulation by the Ministry of Finance, with measures to combat illegal betting and offer some type of security to bettors.
In an interview with GLOBO published on the 16th, the president of Caixa confirmed the plan and revealed his expectation of launching it at the end of November.
— It’s a new market, and Caixa is an entrant. We want to be an important player — he said, at the time, when asked about the competition between electronic betting and bank lotteries.
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The launch of Caixa’s bet has been used by opposition parliamentarians to criticize the government. During his trip to Asia, the president complained about the negative repercussions of the project.
When contacted, the president of Caixa declined to comment. He said he will only comment on the matter after talking to Lula.
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Lula has insisted on the need to increase tax rates for betting houses. The government decided to send Congress again, in the coming days, a proposal that expands the taxation of bets and fintechs.
