Paraguay President Santiago Peña is seeking to fast-track a vote to dissolve the Comisión Nacional de Juegos de Azar (CONAJZAR) and transfer gambling oversight to the proposed Dirección Nacional de Juegos de Azar (DINAJZAR). The reform has been under discussion since October and would also reshape the system for awarding gambling concessions.
DINAJZAR has been presented to the Senate as an autonomous regulator with legal oversight of the sector, reporting to the Ministry of Finance. The government’s proposal would allow up to three concessions each for quiniela and sports betting. A land-based casino concession would also give its holder the right to obtain an online casino licence.
The overhaul forms part of the Colorado government’s economic programme and follows years of disputes over CONAJZAR’s management of licences and state-owned contracts.
Concession process under scrutiny
A major source of criticism has been the exclusive sports-betting concession awarded to Daruma SAM, operator of Apostala. The company won a further five-year term in CONAJZAR’s 2022 tender, maintaining its status as Paraguay’s only authorised sports-betting operator. Rival bidders challenged the decision, prompting descriptions of Apostala as a “protected incumbent” rather than “unchallenged”.
In July 2023, competition authority CONACOM also found several barriers to competition in the tender. Its concerns covered the exclusion of international bidders and their experience in consortia, financial assessment criteria and the importance given to an applicant’s existing retail network. CONACOM recommended changes to make future tenders more accessible.
Leadership turnover has added to questions about the regulator. Javier Balbuena resigned as CONAJZAR president in March 2018 amid controversy over an earlier sports-betting award to Daruma. He said his departure was a personal decision and denied that the tender dispute was the reason. After José Antonio Ortiz resigned in 2022, María Galván del Puerto served as interim president. Peña appointed Carlos Liseras to lead the commission in August 2023, showing that the debate spans successive administrations.
Industry calls for open access
APOJA president Lorena Rojas supported greater regulatory autonomy for DINAJZAR but objected to limiting sports betting to three operators. She said market entry should reflect demand, product quality and strict technical and financial standards.
Private operators have also called for a review of the proposed link between land-based and online casino licences, citing differences in their investment structures. Balbuena separately warned that long digital concessions could entrench operators and slow innovation. APOJA is preparing observations for Congress.
For Peña’s conservative administration, now entering its fourth year, the reform raises the question of how far to open the market. More concessionaires could widen participation, but a statutory cap would still leave the state deciding how many operators can compete. The outcome will depend on whether the new system creates genuine access for entrants or simply allocates a limited number of protected positions.
