About this app
What is Magic Stones?
In 2025, Brazil collected almost BRL10 billion ($1.97 billion) in tax revenue from the licensed sector. In the first seven months of this year alone, BRL8.7 billion generated by the activity was delivered to public coffers. The Federal Revenue Service itself estimates that the sector should reach BRL16 billion in revenue during 2026.
Besides revenue collection, another concern is legal and economic. Companies have paid over BRL2.5 billion for licences since the sector’s regulation. Certainly, the end of the activity would lead to litigation to recover the amounts paid and compensation for investments made. Furthermore, the revenue from betting is already included in the Annual Budget Law and the Budget Guidelines Law, which define the priorities for federal government spending.
What worries the sector is not just the threat of drastic measures against legalised betting. So far, the government has consistently fallen short in its attempts to curb the illegal market, which still represents almost half of the segment.
About Magic Stones
A deepfake gambling advertisement claiming the father of Canadian soccer star Alphonso Davies was arrested over CA$3 million in purported online casino winnings is shining a spotlight on grey-market enforcement in Alberta’s newly regulated iGaming market.
According to reporting by The Edmonton Sun, an advertiser operating under the name “Prime Spin Zone” placed an ad on Instagram showing Davies’ father being arrested by Edmonton police.
The video shows a vault filled with cash, followed by a scene where Davies’ father is released after police allegedly determine the money came from legitimate gambling, the ad claims.
About Magic Stones
According to the German Press Agency, the Frankfurt public prosecutor’s office, together with the Frankfurt tax investigation unit, the State Office for the Combat of Financial Crime in North Rhine-Westphalia and Frankfurt police, executed coordinated searches across 11 premises on Tuesday.
Over 100 officers participated in the operation. Authorities seized several high-value vehicles, froze numerous bank accounts and imposed an asset restraint order valued at around €82 million. An arrest warrant was also executed.
Prosecutors allege that five suspects had operated internet-based gambling services without the required German licences from at least July 2021. The volume of bets placed on these platforms reportedly exceeded €5.8 billion between mid-2021 and the end of 2023.
