‘Clown car’ California plan moves to petition stage
California proposals, Brazilian legislation, crypto regulation +More
California OSB plan moves to petition stage – despite implacable opposition.
President Lula signs sports betting into law in Brazil.
The Gulf is the best for forward-looking crypto regulation, says Yolo founder.
California OSB proposals
The Attorney General clears the way for proposals to move to the petition stage.
It’s my party: The backers of the contentious sports-betting proposals in California have got the official go-ahead to start collecting the necessary 874,641 signatures, but still face heavy opposition from tribal opponents. The move comes after Attorney General Rob Bonta released the circulating title and summary of the petition.
Kasey Thompson, a representative of the Eagle 1 Acquisition Company, told SportsHandle the proponents have employed the “best signature-gathering company” in California – but he declined to give the company’s name.
Eagle 1 plans to augment the traditional petition gatherers with Hall of Fame professional athletes stationed at venues around the state.
Put it on the tab: Thompson suggested Eagle 1 will put $25m into the petition-gathering effort but, when speaking to PlayUSA, he broadly hinted that Eagle 1 was hoping operators might later pick up the tab. “I’m going to start this but I’m expecting support from other operators, support from the out-of-state operators,” he said. “If nobody wants to join in then it will be a shorter signature campaign.”
Not in my name: Despite supposedly being drawn up to favor tribal control, the proposal has already been rejected by the main tribal representative body in California, CNIGA, which unanimously opposed the plans late last year.
Responding on X to the news of the petition go-forward, Victor Rocha from the Pechanga Band of Indians, predicted the petition would fail.
“There is no will,” he wrote. “This clown car has no wheels.”
To date, only four tribes have given their support to the Eagle 1 proposition.
Mud-slinging: The wording of the petition also came in for criticism. “The description is as clear as mud,” Las Vegas-based consultant Brendan Bussmann of B Global Advisors told SportsHandle. “And if you think voters are going to read that and understand what it does, then good luck with that.”
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US
Maine chance: A bill that would expand the rights of the tribes in Maine to offer iCasino is being considered by state legislators, according to local media. The bill, introduced last April by Rep. Laura Supica and carried over to the current session, would grant the tribes exclusive licenses for iCasino alongside the current rights on OSB in operation since November last year.
The report also suggested two further gaming expansion measures will be considered, including one that would require the state to negotiate with one or more tribes for the development of a casino on tribal lands.
The other would allow electronic bingo and HHR machines to be operated by federally recognized tribes.
Pick’em defense: In an interview with VIXIO GamblingCompliance, PrizePicks CEO Adam Wexler has defended the company’s stance with regard to pick’em games, saying the increased regulatory scrutiny is due to its success and opposition from rivals FanDuel and DraftKings.
“It’s not like the regulators woke up in our seventh football season and said they have an issue with our product,” he told VIXIO.
“But all of a sudden the states where we already possess licenses, where we already pay taxes, became an issue. That’s kind of crazy to me.”
Delaware: OSB is now live in the state via the partnership between the state’s three B&M casinos and Rush Street Interactive.
Global
Alderney: A new National Risk Assessment report from the Bailiwick of Guernsey suggested the risk of money laundering has found the “inherent vulnerability” of iCasino operations means they should be assessed as a medium-risk sector. This represents an increased risk rating compared to the 2021 assessment when iCasinos were rated a low risk.
But the assessors noted the “generally risk-averse” nature of the businesses involved and said they “typically declined business” from high-risk countries.
The report also noted Alderney does not allow licensees to accept crypto deposits.
Curaçao: The newly formed regulatory body, the Gaming Control Board, has created a digital seal to be used by operators it authorizes.
Finland: Monopoly operator Veikkaus said it is now enforcing identification requirements across all of its online and in-person platforms as part of its efforts to comply with the 2021 Lotteries Act.
Buzz kill: A Halloween-themed Facebook posting for Buzz Bingo has been found likely to have had an appeal to children, according to the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority.
Who knew? The ASA found that the style of animated imagery used in the ad, including crooked trees, a smiling carved pumpkin and ”text which resembled slime” was reminiscent of children’s cartoons and story books, while the term “monster” was likely to appeal to children.
I’m dreaming of a blue Christmas: Chelsea has agreed a sleeve sponsorship deal with BingX, the Singapore-based cryptocurrency company, for the remainder of the season. The agreement will also see BingX’s logo appear on the front of the English Premier League club’s training kits next season.
According to The Daily Telegraph, BingX is “a steadfast supporter of the Russian crypto community.”
The deal follows the club’s bid last year to have Stake.com as its main shirt sponsor, which was subsequently shelved after a backlash from fans.
What we’re reading
Mod father: Casino operator Rank’s director of public affairs says the UK government needs to accelerate the modernization of the industry as laid out in its own White Paper proposals, according to an opinion article for the Betting and Gaming Council.
Brazilian legislation
Pen to paper: The bill to regulate sports betting and iCasino in Brazil has become law after receiving the signature of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The bill features an amended tax rate of 12% and a similarly shrunken players tax of 15%, and allows for up to three brands per licensee.
One last thing: The final bill saw some last-minute amendments. Tax exemptions for those winning less than $430 a year were removed along with some elements of the rules around promos. The rest of the document is as approved by the Chamber of Deputies just before Christmas.
Approval rating: The law’s approval was welcomed by the Brazilian Institute for Responsible Gambling (IBJR), which praised the joint effort between the legislative and executive branches and the private sector in designing a modern and necessary regulation.
However, the IBJR pointed out it is still necessary to precisely define the basis and calculation method for the tax on winnings paid to bettors.
The body warned that a bad player experience – whether due to excessive taxation or a calculation system that becomes unpredictable in practice due to complexity – could push players back into the informal market.
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The token word
Gulf game: In an editorial for Arabian Business, the founder of Yolo, Tim Heath, said the Gulf region has “emerged as the leading investment destination for blockchain and cryptocurrency companies,” suggesting the various states in the region have embraced crypto and Web3 technologies as a feature of their drive to diversify their economies.
Heath accused the US of becoming an “unpredictable tangle of regulation and draconian, unpredictable enforcement.”
He noted the SEC has continued with its “hawkish drive,” concurring with recent comment from Coinbase’s CEO Brian Armstrong, who has described the SEC’s as a “lone crusade” against crypto.
At the same time, many firms within the sector have “flocked” to Dubai, Doha and Manama where they are “working hand-in-glove with regional governments to build a digital economy and bring to market new products that aim to solve real-world problems.”
Piqued: Heath cited recent data from Chainalysis that showed an estimated $390bn on-chain value received in the region between July 2022 and June 2023. He suggested this is a rate of growth that should “pique one’s interest especially as it coincides with a retreat from western markets including the US and the EU.”
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