Zona de Azar Brazil – Brazil: Senate Criticizes Oversight in the Creation of Betting Companies Using “*Laranjas”

Brazil, December 5, 2024. www.zonadeazar.com Senator Izalci Lucas (PL-DF) highlighted in a speech this Wednesday (4) a report from Estadão claiming that beneficiaries of programs such as Bolsa Familia are listed as owners of online betting companies —known as “bets.” According to the article, foreign groups have been using Brazilians as “laranjas” (fronts) to set up shell companies.

*”Laranja” refers to someone who acts as a front or figurehead in illegal activities

— The Ministry of Finance, which should act as the guardian of the authorization process for these companies, seems more concerned with collecting the R$30 million charged per license than ensuring the applicants’ integrity. The delay in analyzing applications creates a perfect window of opportunity for fraudsters to operate with impunity. There is no oversight. When beneficiaries of social programs are confirmed as owners of these companies, it should set off all red flags. However, what we see are vague speeches about the need for investigation.

The senator stated that the use of Brazilians as fronts in schemes led by foreign groups reveals the fragility of national sovereignty. According to Izalci, it is unacceptable that a country with technological and human resources allows its legislation and citizens to be manipulated by external interests.

— For Bolsa Familia beneficiaries targeted by these schemes, the message is clear: their poverty is not just a statistic but an opportunity for profit for the cleverest. Meanwhile, for the rest of society, the warning is even grimmer: if a system designed to protect the poorest can be so easily corrupted, what about other social and economic protection structures? Indignation, while necessary, is not enough. It is time to demand a structural reform that prioritizes ethics, transparency, and social justice before the collapse becomes irreversible. What we see is a bleak scenario, a devastating portrait of this structural fragility.

Source: Senate Agency (Reproduction authorized with citation of the Senate Agency).
Edited by: @_fonta www.zonadeazar.com