Online gambling: grey market (Venezuela)

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1) From what "grayness": the legal framework is for the "earth," but not for the Internet

The basic industry is described by the 1997 Casino/Bingo/Slot Machine Act and its regulations: it sets the permitting, supervision and sanctions for land-based establishments. For online formats, the law does not contain a separate "modality."

The lottery sector is regulated separately - Ley Nacional de Lotería and the CONALOT (National Lottery Commission) structure. This is also about offline circulation/administration, not online casinos.

Consequence: there is no national online B2C license, register of allowed domains/applications, unified KYC/AML and responsible Internet game standards. Venezuelan investigations explicitly call this an "online gaming vacuum."

2) What happens in practice: offshore and online hype "by concepts"

Without a local digital framework, players go to offshore sites (Curacao, MGA, etc.). Profile reviews note the lack of a special law and the fact that Venezuelans massively use foreign operators.

Online betting on horse racing (hipika) has grown in recent years, but journalistic materials emphasize the almost complete absence of specific norms and official statistics on turnover - the gray segment is developing without transparent state control.

3) Contrast with offline: "restart" 2021-2022 and symbols of 2020

In the "external" circuit, the authorities partially returned land casinos: in September 2021, about 30 permits were reported to launch halls after a ten-year ban. This is an offline reform that does not create an online regime.

Back in January 2020, the president announced a casino at the Humboldt Hotel (Caracas) with betting at Petro (PTR) - a move that showed a reversal of policy, but again in the plane of the ground facility.

4) Why "gray" online is dangerous for the user

There is no "white list": it is difficult to distinguish a licensed platform from phishing.

There are no local mandatory CUS/WG standards for online operators: the risks of payment freezes, ludomania and underage access.

Complex rights protection: disputes with offshore sites are practically not resolved in national jurisdiction.

These risks stem from the fixed regulatory vacuum online.

5) Why it is profitable for the state to "pull" the market out of the gray zone

Even the offline reactivation of 2021 showed that legal formats bring control and publicity. Similarly online: the emergence of digital modality (like neighbors) will allow you to channel traffic, collect fiscal revenues and reduce the share of offshore companies. Now the "figure" remains outside the whole frame - unlike offline.

6) What you need to "whitewash" online (minimum package)

1. Law on games operated via the Internet: definitions, types of products, rights/obligations.

2. Register of allowed domains/applications with public verification.

3. Technical regulations: certification, logging, reporting, data storage.

4. KYC/AML and responsible play (self-exclusion, limits, age filters).

5. Enforcement by design: procedures for blocking illegal immigrants, interaction with telecom and payment providers.

Without these elements, the online segment will continue to remain "gray," and players will go offshore. Such findings are regularly reflected in local investigations and industry reviews.

As of October 2025, online gambling in Venezuela is mainly a gray market: offline is regulated (1997 law, partial reactivation of 2021), lotteries have their own vertical, and on the Internet there is a vacuum of norms and the dominance of offshore sites plus poorly regulated online hype. Until a separate digital frame appears with registers, technical requirements and KUS/RG, "gray" will remain the norm.

It is necessary - I will prepare a checklist for your editorial office: "how to quickly check the legality of the site" (signs, texts of warnings for users and safe alternatives).