The blocking of the use of Bolsa Família cards to pay for sports bets is being implemented, said this Thursday (17) the Minister of Development, Social Assistance and Combating Hunger, Wellington Dias. “This decision has already been adopted and we are now in the implementation phase from a technical point of view”, declared Dias upon leaving a meeting with the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad.
The minister clarified that the blocking of social program cards for payment to bets (websites betting) occurs parallel to the anticipation of the general ban on credit cards for the payment of electronic bets.
“We are working with a view to ensuring compliance with the rule, which imposes on all cards, credit and Bolsa Família, the rule that limits, preventing their use for paying for bets”, he explained. “The measure is general, so as not to create prejudice against the Bolsa Família card, the general measure that applies to all cards also applies to the Bolsa Família card,” said Dias.
In the case of Bolsa Família, the minister informed, in addition to the general ban on credit cards, Caixa Econômica Federal will establish a zero limit for payments to bookmakers. Dias assured that legalized bets are helping the government in blocking its pages.
“The Bolsa Família card is free to use to access family needs, food and others. Certainly, games are not a necessity. In order not to even create prejudice against the Bolsa Família card, the general measure that applies to all cards also applies to the Bolsa Família card”, added the minister.
Regarding a date for the start of the blockade, the minister said he hoped it would happen “as soon as possible”, reiterating that he is maintaining dialogue with electronic betting companies.
Stigmatization
Regarding the study by the Central Bank (BC), which showed that around 5 million Bolsa Família beneficiaries spent R$3 billion on bets only in August, Wellington Dias said it was necessary to avoid stigmatizing the social program.
“When we look at the entire Brazilian population, there are 52 million people who play. When we look at Bolsa Família’s audience, there are 3 million. When we calculate the proportion, 52% of the entire population and 17.5% of Bolsa Família beneficiaries play. Who used the card [do programa] it was just 1.4%”, highlighted Dias. “My whole concern is not to demonize the public of Bolsa Família and other social programs.”
List
According to latest update From the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets of the Ministry of Finance, there are 98 companies, with 215 bets authorized to explore fixed odds bets throughout the national territory. Another 26 companies are authorized to operate in only a few states: five in Paraná, four in Maranhão, one in Minas Gerais, eight in Rio de Janeiro and eight in Paraíba.
In relation to approximately 2,030 companies and websites irregularities, the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) started to disable pages last Friday (11). The regulatory agency notified around 21,000 telecommunications companies across the country to suspend access to websites from the negative list.
