Cibelae Discusses State of Latin American Gaming at Summit
At the 7th Ibero-American Gaming Summit, held in Panama City, the group Cibelae introduced the event by explaining the current state of the Latin American gaming industry. Cibelae is the Ibero-American State Lottery and Betting Corporation, a group that invites member states across LATAM to collaborate, share information and help further the progress of the gaming industry throughout the wide territory it covers. It has a unique position as an expert in the field and was therefore invited to open the latest summit, a major gathering for those working in lottery, betting and other gambling.
Cibelae at the Ibero-American Gaming Summit
Cibelae’s work at the latest iteration of the Ibero-American Gaming Summit took place across two days, May 16th and 17th, 2023. During various talks and panels, the group emphasized the effects of digital technologies on the gaming industry. They also spoke about regulation, a topic that many member states from Brazil to Colombia to Paraguay are grappling with.
Cibelae used the Ibero-American Gaming Summit in Panama City as an opportunity to discuss Latin American gaming regulation and more.
©Ángel López/Unsplash
One of the events that Cibelae headed was a round table discussion called “Perspectives on Lotteries in Ibero-America: digitization and regulation,” addressing exactly these two pertinent topics. The group’s executive director, Rodrigo Ciglutti, moderated the talk. Lotteries from all over the region sent representatives to attend and participate.
Guests included El Salvador’s National Charitable Lottery president, Javier Milián, who also acts as president for Cibelae; Buenos Aires’ city lottery president, Martín García Santillán; Ecuador’s National Lottery Regulation and Compliance manager, Rosa Maria Muñoz; and finally, Costa Rica’s Social Protection Board president, Esmeralda Britton.
All guests communed in order to talk about regulatory standards across LATAM. More specifically, they spoke to the importance of updating current regulation guidelines to address a changing industry. Given the presence of so many lottery representatives, lottery gaming was a main focus of discussion.
Technology is both a help and a hindrance, opening up new possibilities for regulation management, as well as new challenges that must be addressed to ensure legality and prevent clandestine betting activity.
Overall, the panel spoke a great deal on the topic of the modernization of the lottery industry, which is one of Cibelae’s goals. Cibelae also used the opportunity to share some upcoming events it is instigating on the same topics.
In mid-July, 2023, Cibelae will host a seminar called, “Prevention of Asset Laundering and Security: challenges and solutions” in Mexico City. Cibelae also produces its own “Congress,” which this year has the title of, “Responsible gamblers make good bets.” This will be hosted in Lisbon in November, 2023.
A visit to Panama’s National Charitable Lottery
While in Panama City for the summit, Cibelae took the opportunity to formally visit Panama’s National Charitable Lottery (LNB). This delegation was made up of Javier Milián Velásquez, Esmeralda Britton González and Rodrigo Cigliutti. LNB’s general director, Gloriela del Río, and her team received the group.
As well as a chance to see LNB’s operations, the meeting included time for discussion between the two groups, during which they talked about both opportunities and challenges lotteries are currently facing. They also discussed how the entities can collaborate in the future.
The meeting was perhaps a highlight of the summit, given LNB’s history. LNB has been in operation for more than 100 years, making it one of the most long-standing lotteries in LATAM. It is also Panama’s principal charity organization, contributing a great deal to the country’s social infrastructure with its various contributions each year.
