The president of the Brazilian Federation of Banks (Febraban), Isaac Sidney, defended this Thursday (12), in São Paulo, the anticipation of the ban on the use of credit cards to pay for electronic and sports bets.
At an event with journalists, he asked the government to prohibit the use of this payment method on betting sites to avoid compromising account holders’ income and increasing default rates.
“I personally believe – and this is a personal position – that the government should use all legal means to immediately prohibit the use of credit cards for gambling. The ban is still not being observed. Cards are a fundamental product and their use for gambling is already affecting household consumption and increasing defaults,” Sidney pointed out.
Personal opinion
In a statement, Febraban highlighted that this is Sidney’s personal opinion and that, despite being president of the entity, he does not speak on behalf of the federation, nor of the associated banks.
In April, the Ministry of Finance has defined that electronic bets can only be paid by Pix, transfer or debit. The restriction, however, will only come into effect in January, when the new regulations for betsas betting companies are called.
Sidney added that he had discussed the issue with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and also with the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad. According to him, Febraban is analyzing the impact of the bets in household over-indebtedness. The increase in sports betting, he added, could be reflected in higher interest rates on credit granting due to the increase in defaults.
