Emerging markets & culture
Slow and steady may win the race Despite an announcement at the end of 2020 from the Chilean Ministry of Finance that it was bringing forward a bill to regulate online gambling, progress towards regulated gaming in Chile has been slow. However, in March 2022, a regulation bill was presented to Congress, and it is currently under analysis by the Economy Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. Carlos Baeza examines what the bill contains and forecasts when it is likely to become law.
A t the end of 2020, the Chilean Ministry of Finance announced that a Bill to regulate online betting platforms would be presented to Congress. The ministry was acting under the exclusive initiative of the President of the Republic. Although the initial intention expressed by the Treasury was to submit this Bill to Congress during the first semester of the year 2021, political circumstances caused it to be delayed until March 2022 when it was presented to Congress. Congress is in the process of analyzing the regulation but the hope is that from here progress should be smoother. Although it is unlikely that this Bill will become law in the short term it will hopefully pass in late 2023, or early 2024. This means that now is the moment that potential investors should consider Chile. It is an emerging market that could become the next destination for operators looking for lighter operational conditions and a more financially sustainable and profitable place to do
business. The new Bill, once it is passed, combined with one of the highest per capita incomes in the region and a bank usage rate of approximately 75 percent will make Chile a very interesting market. CONTENTS OF THE BILL TO REGULATE ONLINE GAMBLING PLATFORMS Under the Chilean constitution, gambling must be the subject of a law, and the exclusive initiative of the President of the Republic. There are two reasons for this: first it establishes new taxes, and second, because it establishes new powers and modifies public services. What has been presented by the Ministry of Finance is a Bill that regulates the operation of Online Gaming Platforms, and in addition, establishes a series of amendments to Law 19.996 that regulates the operation of gaming casinos and
IMGL Magazine • November 2022 • 59
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