DigiPlus Interactive Corp. may be one of the online gaming firms set to operate in Brazil by January next year after passing the qualification round to obtain its federal license.
The company on Thursday said its subsidiary, DigiPlus Brazil Interactive Ltda., was now in the final stages of the licensing process. It has a month to complete postqualification requirements, including platform certification and license fee payments.
During the Philippine Stock Exchange’s Investor Day forum, DigiPlus president Andy Tsui explained they had applied for a five-year license worth around $6 million.
READ: 9-month DigiPlus profit reached P8.75B
Once the requirements are accomplished, Brazil’s Ministry of Finance Secretariat of Awards and Bets will release a final list of companies allowed to operate starting Jan. 1, 2025, DigiPlus noted in a stock exchange filing.
The federal license would allow DigiPlus to operate and offer online sports betting, electronic games, live studios and other fixed-odds betting activities in the Latin American country.
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“As we navigate the final steps of the licensing process, we remain confident in our ability to align with Brazil’s regulatory requirements and introduce world-class gaming experiences to this dynamic market,” DigiPlus chair Eusebio Tanco said in a statement.
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This comes nearly a year after the Brazilian government legalized fixed-odds betting related to sports events and online games.
Fixed-odds is a form of gambling where players bet on the probability of a certain event happening, such as the odds of a horse winning or losing in a race.
According to DigiPlus, 87 percent of Brazil’s 200-million population had access to the internet, making it a key market for online gambling, or iGaming.
DigiPlus, which operates BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, saw its earnings in the first nine months of the year surge by more than fourfold as strong demand for digital games fueled the rapidly growing sector.
The company’s net income swelled by 314 percent to P8.75 billion, buoyed by the retail games segment and new product offerings.
Revenues likewise ballooned by 223 percent to P51.56 billion.
DigiPlus recently launched Pinoy Drop Ball, a digital “perya” (Filipino carnival) game that promises a jackpot prize of up to P200 million if the ball drops on a card that a player bet on. —Meg J. Adonis