The Federal Regional Court of the Third Region (TRF-3) has postponed a judgment that could ban the operation of MegaLoterias, one of the main online lottery sites in the country. With this measure, activity remains on track for the next competitions, including the Mega da Virada, which on the 31st will draw a prize estimated at R$850 million.
This extension constitutes a new stage in the conflict opened by Caixa against gaming intermediation sites, which have become popular in the country. They place bets for customers and then register at bank-accredited lottery points. The amenities offered include organizing bets, checking results and building pools, in addition to choosing numbers based on consumer preferences.
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Caixa claims that this is an illegal exploitation of games for which it has an exclusive license. And that the sector uses the brands of its products without authorization.
The conflict pits the bank against sectors of the government itself. The Secretariat of Prizes and Paris of the Ministry of Finance, in a letter last year, considered that the sites do not manage, but only mediate the games between bettors and Caixa.
“What can be observed is that the platforms do not sell their own tickets, but register them with lottery units authorized by the CEF (Caixa). As already mentioned, there are no regulations or express prohibitions for the intermediation activity explored by the platforms in capturing bets, while the CEF is responsible for the administration of federal lotteries,” says the document prepared by the Ministry of Finance.
On another front, the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (Cade) has opened an investigation to assess possible anticompetitive practices in the market by trying to block activity in the sector. The organization recognized that the intermediation activity is legal and that the market is divided into two distinct segments: administration, by the bank, and intermediation, by other agents.
Furthermore, Cade considered that the activity is regulated by the Treasury and not by the federal financial institution.
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Understand the process by which Caixa attempts to prohibit the operation of the MegaLoterias site
The bank won at first instance, ordering that intermediation services no longer be offered. But Judge Mônica Nobre, of the 4th Panel of the TRF-3, granted the decision suspensive effect while the court analyzes the company’s appeal.
This Thursday (12/18), the magistrate decided to postpone the analysis of the case until March, when Judge Wilson Zaury, rapporteur of another game intermediation case, should be present at the hearing. Caixa’s foray into the justice sector also targets other players in the sector, such as the Sorte Online site, the largest in activity.
To TRF-3 judges, the bank told its lottery business “does not care about making a profit,” since the bulk of the revenue goes to social programs and the middle market would circumvent that nature. The financial institution’s balance sheets, however, show that the lottery branch generated a net profit of 68.55 million reais in the first half of this year alone.
The policy of this sector of the bank establishes that dividends are distributed from the profits obtained. It defines, for example, that “shareholders (Caixa) are guaranteed the right to receive, as a mandatory dividend, each year, at least 25% of the adjusted net profit”.
When contacted, Caixa indicated that it does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.
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