Brazil May Have a New Lottery Soon
The international group GDA Consortium has proposed launching a new lottery in Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil to be called LOTEJU. It should be one of several new state lotteries that have been in the works since last 2020, including Health and Tourism lotteries. All of the new lotteries have essentially been designed with the idea of creating new tax revenue for much-needed public sectors in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has hit Brazil strongly.
The international GDA Consortium has proposed to form a new regional lottery in Brazil. ©Michal Matlon/Unsplash
Who are the GDA?
The GDA Consortium has been created from several other groups who all have high-level knowledge of lottery and gaming programs. It includes GetLucky, a Portuguese gaming company, Apus Payments, a North American payments group, and Decart, from Bulgaria.
Together, the consortium has analyzed and put together a proposal regarding the formation of a new lottery in the Brazilian state of Sergipe. The proposal aims to highlight the benefits that could occur from the formation of such a lotto in the region. Many other regional and state lottos have been proposed in Brazil recently, all with the aim of bringing in additional support for the economy.
What happens next?
Now that the proposal has been submitted, the GDA will try to argue in favor of the lottery in open discussion with relevant government authorities in Brazil. The GDA will try to show what is needed in terms of legislature and other structuring aspects to create the new lotto. All of this is based on a decision by Brazil’s Supreme Court (STF) in 2020, which allowed states and municipalities the ability to explore opening their own lotteries.
As a part of the proposal, the GDA Consortium has also confirmed that it will work with the Municipality of Aracaju by legal means in order to co-create the most effective lottery possible in the area. Though they are not a Brazilian firm, they also acknowledged the importance of understanding the gaming landscape in Brazil and vowed to collaborate with local authorities to do so.
LOTEJU Projections
GDA’s proposal also included data about similar lottery projects to show was the Aracaju lotto might take in as tax revenue. One key figure was from Caixa Econômica Federal (CEF). CEF recorded R $17.1 billion ($3 billion USD) in bets in 2020. Even in the midst of the pandemic, this showed an increased of 2.5% from the previous year for the region.
Based on this and other information from the Jogo Legal Institute, the GDA estimates that the Aracaju lotto could bring in R $5 million ($886,000 USD) in its first year, based on the area’s population and the popularity of lotto games there. They believe this figure could increase to R $18 million ($ 3.1 million USD) by the second year.
Where would lotto operations be based?
Another big topic on the table is where operations for the new LOTEJU lottery would be headquartered. GDA proposes that it makes much more sense to base the operations in Aracaju itself rather than bring it to Brazil’s capital where it would be run by the State. Part of the reason is that this would be much more costly, and for a region the size of Aracaju, the returns may not be enough to justify that cost.
An additional benefit to keep operations local is additional stimulation for the region’s economy by way of job creation. The consortium has also made an interesting argument stating that introducing the lottery will help reduce crime in the region by taking away interest from illegal gambling, which is a key financial source for criminal gangs there.
Citing a similar lottery in Carioca as a positive example, the consortium asked for the state to not delay voting on the proposal, as it could reap major benefits in terms of social change and tax revenue for the area and its inhabitants. Unfortunately some lotto propositions have faced hardship including delays, and have not been moving forward despite great state and local interest.
