Brazil opens to casinos, Adelson hints USD8b project

At the hint of a most probable reintroduction of casinos in Brazil after a ban that took effect seventy years ago, the interest of gaming moguls in the largest country in Latin America has been growing.

Las Vegas Sands president Sheldon Adelson reportedly met earlier this week with the Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Marcelo Crivella, before heading to Brasilia, the country’s capital city, Brazilian newspaper O Globo reported.

During the meeting with Crivella, Adelson advanced plans to hold a project in Brazil that will represent an investment of around USD 8 billion, according to O Globo.

This project is said to follow the same idea of the integrated resorts built in Macau, and could generate over 10,000 jobs.

Adelson reportedly also mentioned that the project might depend on the capacity of the city to receive tourists for gambling, inferring that the city would need to have more 4 and 5 star hotels.

After the meeting, Crivella revealed to the newspaper that the meeting with the American businessman was related to investments in the city, although he did not mention the word ‘casino’.

The same source says that this is not the first such visit, noting that recently, the head of MGM Resorts group, James Murem, was also in Brasília, and adding that other people such as the former Mayor of Las Vegas and current top executive at Caesars Entertainment Corporation, Jan Laverty Jones, had also been seen in Brazil’s capital city.

The list is not restricted to the Americans. Portuguese Estoril Sol group and an Austrian state-run operator also met with Brazil’s high officials to present several ideas and projects.

However, the first barrier that must be overcome is legal in nature, since casinos are not allowed (for now) in Brazil and there are many groups in the country that oppose their legalization.

Such groups have argued that gambling could lead to addiction, money laundering, and the creation of criminal organizations.
Legalization seems to be gaining favor within the government and political circles as a way to boost the economy.

According to lawmaker Elman Nascimento who presides a special committee that analyzed the issue, there is a high expectation that casino-related investments will reach over MOP200b.

Nascimento said to O globo, “These groups are interested in investing in the country, creating integrated casino resorts. There is a high willingness to invest. But legal certainty is a requirement for such investments to take place,” he noted, adding “in addition to the groups from the United States and Europe, there are also companies from Argentina and Uruguay with an eye on the country.”

According to sources inside the Brazilian legislative system, there are currently two processes running in Brazilian institutions in order to proceed to a legalization of the casinos; one in the House of Representatives and another in the Senate. However, these process will at some point merge into a final regulatory system to be voted on by the plenary as one.

The process in the House of Representatives has already been voted on, and now awaits approval by the president of the house, Rodrigo Maia.

The bill in the Senate is in currently being analyzed by the Constitution and Justice Commission.
It is already known that the regulatory framework will criminalize at federal level all kinds of other gambling and its exploitation in order to raise security for investors.

Gaming tables will also be connected to the Federal Taxes and Finance Department and will include an online monitoring system.

The proposal also establishes a ratio on the number of casinos allowed per city according to the number of inhabitants. Cities up to 15 million people will only be allowed one casino. Those with a population between 15 and 25 million people will be allowed two casinos, and those with populations above 25 million will be permitted three casinos. The proposal also suggests a limit of three casinos per state.  RM

Visit to help define future steps

The fact that Sheldon Adelson is in Brazil this week holding meetings with local authorities is a clear sign that he is considering possible investments in the country as soon as gambling is legalized. According to Games Magazine, “Adelson’s closest advisers say that he wants to get closer to the discussions surrounding the passage of the law in Brazil, and that his visit to businessmen, deputies, senators and top officials of president Temer’s government will help him in making decisions regarding investments in the Brazilian market.”