IBIA establishes innovative Payment Provider Forum to protect the integrity of the sports betting market in Brazil from financial fraud

19 February 2025: In a pioneering move to bolster the integrity of Brazil’s newly regulated and rapidly expanding sports betting market, the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) today launched a dedicated Payment Provider Forum with the explicit goal of protecting the market from financial fraud related to competition manipulation.

The project has launched with six prominent payment providers already signed up to a Declaration of Commitment and Participation: Bazk, Z.ro Bank, OneKey Payments, OKTO, VPag and Pay4Fun.

With IBIA’s members forecast to generate over 70% of remote gross gambling revenue in Brazil, IBIA will play a key role in protecting the integrity of the sports betting market. Payment providers and other related financial services can also play a crucial role in ensuring the integrity of sports betting. The IBIA Payment Provider Forum has therefore been established to foster collaborative activities that contribute to a robust, secure and responsible gambling market in Brazil.

Regulatory and other institutions linked to financial payments and competition manipulation will be invited to join Forum meetings and engage in the development and implementation of preventative actions against financial fraud.

The Forum will also benefit from IBIA’s extensive knowledge of sports betting integrity issues and trends, obtained from its global integrity monitoring and data intelligence network. That includes many of the world’s largest regulated betting operators, active across six continents, and partnerships with leading sports bodies and gambling regulatory authorities. It will also leverage IBIA’s expertise in establishing industry standards, such as its Data Standards Kitemark.

Khalid Ali, CEO at IBIA, said: “Cooperation between financial services, regulatory authorities and betting operators is essential to address the challenges from financial fraud and to maximise the potential of the sector in Brazil. IBIA is therefore delighted that these major payment institutions have agreed to explore collaborative activities to protect the market. Working together, we can create a sustainable and thriving sports betting market in Brazil that benefits all stakeholders. Cross-sector partnership working is a central pillar of IBIA’s global activity, and the association will be assessing the potential benefits of replicating this group in a wider international setting.”

To that end, the Declaration’s signatories have committed to:

Collaborate in the development of standards and best practices for payment processing.
Engage with regulatory bodies to defend a robust, fair and effective regulatory framework.
Promote responsible gambling and consumer, market and sporting event protection.
Share knowledge and expertise to innovate and improve the payments ecosystem.
Maintain the highest standards of ethical conduct and compliance with regulations.

The first meeting of the Forum will take place during SBC Rio. IBIA invites other payment providers and financial institutions that want to cooperate to address financial fraud related to competition manipulation in Brazil to contact the association via info@ibia.bet.

The sports betting industry in Brazil is rapidly evolving and presents significant opportunities for economic growth and innovation. In IBIA’s The Availability of Sports Betting Products report 2024, leading industry intelligence and data company H2 Gambling Capital forecast that the Brazilian licensed sports betting market could generate US$34bn in sports betting turnover by 2028.

IBIA represents over 70 companies and 140 betting brands globally that generate over $300bn in sports betting turnover (handle) per annum. The association is celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025 and has received an ICE Landmark Award recognising the positive impact that IBIA has had over that period in protecting its members and sporting events from match-fixing.

IBIA’s recently released 2024 integrity report detailed 219 suspicious betting alerts reported during to the relevant authorities during the year. IBIA alerts contributed to the investigations and subsequent successful sanctioning of 17 clubs, players and officials in 2024.