Photo: Mauro PIMENTEL / AFPSource: AFPFernanda, a cleaner from Rio de Janeiro, lists off the items she sold to feed her online gambling addiction, one of millions of Brazilians caught in a betting craze that has swept the nation. Online gambling "is going to empty Brazilians' fridges," warned Joao Pedro Nascimento, president of Brazil's securities regulator (CVM). But in recent months they have come under growing scrutiny, with experts warning of the risk to users' mental health and finances, and reports emerging of money laundering by gambling sites. Meanwhile, several hundred betting sites -- most of them based abroad -- operate in a sort of gambling wild west, imposing no rules and paying no taxes. The Brazilian government recently published a list of around 200 betting sites that have been licensed to operate after agreeing to the new regulations.

Source: Daily Nation October 10, 2024 01:58 UTC