Colombia Set to Regulate Online Gambling Market

Coljuegos steps up efforts to regulate online gaming market in Colombia (Image: coljuegos.gov.co).

Colombia is set to become the latest South American country to liberate the gambling market as the Gaming Control Board has ambitious plans to seriously improve the gaming revenue in years to come.

Coljuegos chief Juan Perez Hidalgo has moved to reveal that an average $74 is spent per person on gaming per annum at the moment, but he expects the amount to increase more than three times to $226 by 2025.

The Gaming Control Board official believes they first need to work on removing the negative connotations of gaming and promote it as an entertainment and recreation activity.

In order to do so, Coljuegos has already started the war on illegal gaming operators, confiscating over 3,000 illicit slot machines, while making other advances as well.

The board is working hand in hand with the National Police and Ministry of Defence to improve their chances of closing as many illegal operators as possible, and the first results are already evident.

Coljuegos has become more effective in recent months, reducing the licensing procedures from 52 to 33 days, which in turn led to an 18% increase in land-based gaming operators income, totalling $222,232 million pesos (US$74.8 million).

Colombia’s state lottery Baloto saw excellent results as their revenue rose from $70,936 million pesos in first ten months of 2015 to $109,709 million pesos during the same period of 2016.

Online Gaming Legislation Underway

There were good news for online gaming operators targeting the Colombian market as Juan Perez Hidalgo also got the media acquainted with the new online gaming regulation.

The new bill will require operators to apply for a license, meet strict requirements, get their systems certified and pay a fixed fee in order to offer online games to Colombian residents.

At the same time, the new framework is designed to protect the players from harmful effects of gaming, and ensure they only play at reputable gambling websites that offer fair games and keep their confidential information secure at all times.

The list of approved operators can be found on the Coljuegos website, while specialised gaming laboratories will be in charge of certifying all the gaming platforms offered.