Under the legal entity MMD Tecnologia Entretenimento e Marketing Ltda, Brazil-based Rei do Pitaco joins Betano and Superbet on the list of applicants for a licence. With just under a month to go until the 90-day window of preference shuts on 20 August, only three operators have applied.
Beginning in May, the 90-day initial window ensures operators who apply within that time period will have their applications prioritised by the ministry of finance’s Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA), guaranteeing a decision on their applications ahead of the market launch date of 1 January 2025.
Rei do Pitaco started as a daily fantasy sports operator before making the move into sports betting in 2022. In December of that year, Rei do Pitaco announced a multi-year deal with Kambi to power its online sportsbook.
Its app has been downloaded over 14 million times, with Rei do Pitaco paying out over BRL200m (£27.6m/€32.7m/$35.6m) in prizes.
Brazil applications picking up pace ahead of deadline
Rei do Pitaco’s application is the second made in the month of July after Superbet. After Kaizen Gaming-owned Betano submitted its application just days after the 90-day window opened, the whole of June passed without a request being made.
However, industry members expect the pace of applications to pick up ahead of the deadline. Hugo Baungartner, CCO of Aposta Ganha, believes the publication of the final regulations expected later this month and resulting clarity on certain games will prove the catalyst for operators to submit requests.
Baungartner told iGB earlier this month: “They’re making sure [test] labs that are approved for the Brazilian market know exactly how to certify the games included in the ordinance.”
That process, however, is running behind schedule. AML regulations published last week came out late – they were expected in May – with additional clarity on technical standards and the allocation of gambling contributions still to come.
Meanwhile, Bichara e Motta Advogados’ head of crypto and gambling Udo Seckelmann is expecting up to 60 operators to submit applications by the 20 August deadline.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/legal-compliance/licensing/rei-do-pitaco-brazil-licence/
