Kaizen Gaming, the Athens-based operator of Betano, has guaranteed the jobs of its Brazilian employees until Brazil’s National Congress decides whether to convert the Brazil betting ban into law. The company said in a LinkedIn statement that it is complying with Provisional Measure (MP) 1.394/2026 while it weighs legal action against it.
Kaizen published the statement after staff from across Brazil’s online gambling sector had shared posts about losing their jobs since the ban took effect. The company said the impact reaches beyond operators to small and medium-sized businesses in technology, telecoms, media, services, education and the wider sports economy.
What the Brazil betting ban covers
MP 1.394/2026 was published in the Official Gazette on 25 September and took effect immediately, amending Law 14.790/2023, according to the Federal Senate’s summary of the measure. It prohibits the operation, offer, intermediation and advertising of fixed-odds betting nationwide, covering sports bets and online games, offshore sites and state-authorised operators. Other lottery products provided for by law are not affected.
New deposits were barred from publication. Platforms had to go offline on 6 October, banks must complete player refunds by 14 October, and all federal authorisations lapse on 25 October, 30 days after publication. Operators that fail to meet refund obligations face a daily fine of R$200,000, according to the Senate.
Kaizen’s case against prohibition
Kaizen said the regulated sector generated about R$7.3bn in tax revenue in the first half of 2026, putting the full year on course for around R$15bn, and that the money had funded healthcare, tourism and public security. It argued that a ban does not remove demand for betting and would push players towards unlicensed sites.
Prohibition is not protection. Rules, oversight and education are.
Kaizen Gaming, statement on LinkedIn
The company said it “believes in the rule of law” and would honour the social investment commitments it made in Brazil before the measure. Licensed operators each paid R$30m for five-year federal authorisations, and a survey by the National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) found the ban has cost 3,500 jobs.
Next steps
Congress has 120 days from the measure’s publication, excluding the parliamentary recess, to approve or reject it, or the MP lapses. The ban follows President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s call in April to close online betting platforms, and it falls in the middle of the presidential election, with the runoff set for 25 October, the same day federal authorisations expire. Brazil’s regulated market generated $7bn in gross gaming revenue in its first regulated year.
Source: Kaizen Gaming
