Argentina’s Cordoba Province Set to Legalize Online Gaming

Argentina’s iGaming market continues to expand, albeit slowly. The governor of the province of Cordoba has been given the green light to sign a bill that legalizes online gambling. This bill was introduced in December to end illegal gambling. It allows the use of lotteries, sports betting and casino games.

Cordoba Advances Argentina’s iGaming Efforts

Cordoba complied with Argentina’s decision to allow gambling on a state-by-state basis. The province of Buenos Aires granted licenses to seven operators last January, and the City of Buenos Aires launched operators last month.

The Cordoba bill, which appeared to be close to approval last December, will allow licensees to create their own online gambling offerings. The maximum term of a license is 20 years. Five licenses will be granted. Foreign operators can also be included under the bill, provided that they partner with an approved license holder and don’t contribute more than 35%.

The bill states that all bettors must be at least 18 years old and registered with a licensee. The bill will require license holders to keep the information of players for up to five years after the end of a customer relationship.

Responsible Gaming a Major Part of Legislation

Responsible gaming guidelines have been included in the law. This includes allowing players to set deposit limits and self-exclusion limits. Additionally, alerts that notify players when they are logged into their account more than three hours have been enabled.

Except for the explicit approval of the gaming authority, advertising gambling is prohibited in the bill.

iGaming Taking Off in Argentina

Online gaming operators in the city of Buenos Aires were among the first to launch in Argentina. Some were issued licenses early last year and introduced their operations as 2021 was coming to a close. Codere Online is serving the city, as is 888 Holdings-backed Bplay.

Also in Buenos Aires is Gaming Innovation Group, which is behind Grupo Slots’ online casino and sports betting platforms. Evolution added its name to the group when it introduced its portfolio of games to the Buenos Aires Province in December. Pragmatic Play and Microgaming entered, as well, and the latter is currently recruiting operators.