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Ecuador – New project would bring casinos back to Ecuador

A new project has been put forward that would allow for the reopening of all the casinos in Ecuador.

The project was put forward by Mauricio Villacís, President of the Association of Ex-Workers for the casino sector. According to Villacís the country is losing out on millions in tax revenue and “more than 20,000 jobs directly and indirectly linked to this activity, with an approximate investment of about $400m.”

The project is already in the hands of the Ministries of Labour, Tourism and Economy, as well as the Internal Revenue Service (SRI). It is hoped that through them that the project will ultimately be put forward to President Lenín Moreno, who became Ecuador’s president in 2017 and is far more centrist than his left wing predecessor Rafael Correa.

The supporter of the new bill argues that between its neighbouring countries‎ ‎Peru and Colombia “we have data that they (casinos) report profits of about US$300m.” Of that amount they say as much as 15 per cent is generated by Ecuadorian players.

Villacís said that this means that “some 45 million dollars go to Colombia and Peru for gambling, not to mention online gambling, in which Ecuador has no regulations,” meaning that millions more is probably being gambled via offshore gambling sites.

One of the lawmakers to publicly make a stand on the issue is the Mayor of Quito, Jorge Yunda, who said that the reopening of casinos should be part of a referendum when talking about extending the opening hours of nightclubs.
The bill includes the repeal of Article 236 of the Comprehensive Criminal Code (COIP), which prohibits gambling for profit. Villacís said that casinos could be allowed again either via a referendum or via the Constitutional Court. Among the proposed changes is the creation of a new gaming regulatory body.

Nel settembre 2010 l’allora presidente dell’Ecuador Rafael Correa annunciò che il suo governo stava cercando di vietare i casinò. Affermando che i casinò in Ecuador sono diventati focolai di corruzione e riciclaggio di denaro, Correa ha detto alla stampa locale che la sua amministrazione sottoporrà la questione al popolo ecuadoriano nell'ambito di un referendum. Se il popolo ecuadoriano fosse d'accordo con il punto di vista del Presidente sulla questione, tutti i cinquantacinque casinò e sale bingo dell'Ecuador verrebbero chiusi immediatamente.

Quasi quattro milioni di ecuadoriani (il 47.7% degli elettori) hanno votato a favore di tale mossa, il che significa che molti lavoratori qualificati ed esperti dei casinò, molti dei quali lavoravano nel settore da quasi 15 anni, sono rimasti senza lavoro.

Caption: The old Casino Sol in Ecudaor