There are many global companies operating in the iGaming niche that have begun to invest in Argentina. However, the country is a growing market that has plenty of challenges.
Canada has always had a straightforward approach to online gambling, with robust laws and regulations backing a liberal approach. The industry has grown in recent years, and in places like the US, states are beginning to change laws to allow the use of online casinos. Yet the real battleground is in South America, and in particular Argentina. With a large population, improved digital infrastructures, and a thirst for casual gaming, this country has become the latest hotspot for the casino industry.
At the start of August, an appeal was made to amend the Gambling Law of the City of Buenos Aires. The aim was to improve the screening process for those using casino websites and registering on them, primarily to prevent underage users.
The idea is that the online casinos will have to set up a biological screening process. This will include fingerprint recognition, iris, and facial detection alongside more traditional verification methods. This will be the law on any website that uses gaming with virtual or real money, covering websites, mobile applications, and digital media. If a user fails these screening tests, they are automatically banned from the website.
Yet this does not suggest that Buenos Aires is making moves to prohibit the use of online casinos. Lessons from other countries and states that have amended these types of laws show us one thing: It is doing so because it is taking online casinos very seriously, and that means it is staying.
Argentina is not without its problems which will need to be overcome by operators in the country. The first is that the country is made of autonomous regions. Each of these has its own rules and regulations regarding online casinos. This encompasses 23 provinces and the capital Buenos Aires. Both the city and its province have the largest population, and so are the obvious target markets.
As an example of the complexity of the system, online casinos are legal in the provinces. However, in Buenos Aires and the City of Buenos Aires, any online operators must be licensed. In the provinces online gambling must be an extension of those who already have existing land-based casinos. However, challenges like this are nothing the industry has not faced before, and one it is currently adapting to in the US and to a lesser extent, Europe.
Having companies that are an extension of land-based casinos does protect companies already operating in the country. However, it also excludes consumers from the best online casinos that already have their operations down to an art form. This can include those with the most games or even the fastest payout online casinos based elsewhere. This lack of competition could mire the industry in the dark ages.
Another challenge is the country’s economy. Inflation is rising, and the nation’s currency, the peso, is historically unstable. This makes it tough for any international business to operate in Argentina. While this may be bad for international gambling companies, it could be a blessing for those who are extensions of land-based casinos. If they can expand their reach into other countries, then money coming in from USD and Euros will be worth more on the exchange market.
There are plenty of major companies that have begun to make moves into Argentina. US investor Apollo Global Management recently acquired shares in the UK-based gambling group International Gaming Technology. This also encompassed its operations in Argentina, one of the main draws for the move. Its Prosperity Link multi-level progressive game has since been installed at the Casino Buenos Aires. These Asian-themed titles are standalone machines but are a physical show of how the international casino community is making inroads.
Developers have begun to get a foothold in the country through Casino Club, the biggest chain. They tend to choose games that have already proven popular elsewhere on the globe, and incorporate them into existing digital offerings. Casino Club has been operating in the country since 1992, with a digital arm working since 2019, so it is a trusted player in the Argentinian gambling industry. Many of these developers are based in Malta, the worldwide capital for online casino enterprises.
There are obvious challenges to Argentina. It is broken into provinces, which is not ideal. However, this has been addressed in places like the US and Europe. More worrying is the economy and infrastructure required to grow an audience.
In many ways, that is where the value in the Argentinian market will lie: In growing the audience and getting there first. The global casino market is crowded, making new markets extremely valuable and often worth the risk. With many provinces wanting existing physical casinos to make a digital arm, partnerships are the way to go and manage to offset some of this risk for international investors. If Argentina works out, they could have just made the biggest bet of their lives and got lucky.
