Buenos Aires Approves Seven Businesses for iGambling License

Argentina’s Buenos Aires Provincial Institute of Lottery and Gambling (IPLyC) has approved seven business partnerships for online gambling licenses.

Seven Online Gambling Licenses

The Buenos Aires Provincial Institute of Lottery and Gambling (IPLyC) has concluded its year-long process of evaluating and defining licenses for online gambling within the Buenos Aires Province.

The authority’s decision was first disclosed on 31 December by Boletín Oficial de la República Argentina – the government gazette of the Republic of Argentina. The gazette publishes legal norms as well as executive and judiciary acts.

The IPLyC, helmed by recently-elected President Omar Galdurralde, received 14 license applications. Out of those, the authority only approved seven business partnerships. The operators may now launch online gambling ventures within the country’s most populous state.

The lucky seven partnerships include both domestic and foreign operators:

• ArgenBingo BA and William Hill
• Atlántica de Juegos and Stars Interactive Limited
• Binbaires SA and Intralot SA
• Boldt SA and Cassava Enterprises Gibraltar
• Casino de Victoria and Betsson Group.
• Hotel Casino Tandil and Playtech Plc
• Pasteko SA and Hillside Media Malta

Some notable rejections include big name Spanish players Codere SA and Luckia (Grupo EGASA) as well as Latin American group BetCris.

The authority announced that all eligible players must submit compliance guarantees within 10 businesses days, starting from 31 December. Each pair must also pledge $65 million ARG (just under $800,000 USD) to obtain the gambling licenses.

The gambling ventures will be taxed at 5% of turnover, as was decided last November by the Argentine Ministry of Economy.

A Possible Wrench in the Gears

Jurisdictions across South America have made headway in regard to online gambling over the past year. For example, Colombia approved the launch of live dealer casinos across the country last April. Meanwhile, Brazil is set to rule on the legal status of gambling itself in April 2021. The ruling will be crucial in potentially decriminalizing gambling in Brazil.

And while these developments are promising, the situation in Buenos Aires is not yet set in stone. The current online gambling laws in the Buenos Aires Province were approved by the state’s previous Governor María Eugenia Vidal. Ms. Vidal’s mandate ended on 10 December last year and she was succeeded by Axel Kicillof.

According to a recent report by La Naccion, Mr. Kicillof may intervene in the IPLyC’s decision as he disagrees with the state’s existing gambling laws. La Naccion explained that Mr. Kicillof may introduce stricter regulations.