According to regulator Coljuegos, government revenues from online gambling reached COP 29.8 billion ($8.9 million) in the first half of 2019. This constitutes a 63% year-over-year increase when compared to 2018.
The largest portion of online revenue came from ‘casino and bingo’, totaling COP 186.3 million. Online gambling experienced the largest increase of all gambling sectors, and the online gambling revenue growth rate was significantly higher than the overall growth rate. Coljuegos announced an overall growth rate of 13%, with 9.4% of its revenue coming from online gambling.
Coljuegos also reported that the number of customer accounts had reached 2.5 million by June, up from 1.7 million in December 2018. Colombia has a population of roughly 50 million.
Colombia became the first nation in Latin America to regulate the gambling industry in 2016, and began issuing licenses in 2017.
This kind of growth could indicate that Colombia is a perfect market for operators looking for a foothold in Latin American via online platforms. Argentina and Brazil are also set to become huge markets for online gambling, with both countries moving towards regulation.
