Uruguay lottery leads the way on sustainability

It has adopted the WLA Responsible Gaming (RG) Framework as one of the company’s strategic pillars, and since 2015, has achieved and maintained Level 4 certification to the WLA Responsible Gaming (RG) Framework.  

In addition to this, LaBanca has begun to implement a sustainable policy across its business model. This includes assessing and broadening its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitment, to consider aspects related to the protection of vulnerable groups, climate change and its ecological footprint, to ensure transparency and enhance business operations in the long-term.  

Sandra Conde, General Manager at LaBanca, discusses the organization’s responsible gaming and broader CSR strategy and policies.

How important is responsible gaming to LaBanca?  

In recent years, and especially having lived through the global pandemic, it has become more important for businesses to play their role in the well-being of all their stakeholders while becoming more sustainable. Responsible Gaming is at the heart of our business strategy and part of our DNA. It is integrated into every business decision and our day-to-day operations.  

We have defined a general RG strategy with policies that cover: employees, research, retailers, game design, remote gaming channels, marketing and advertising communications, player education and information, treatment referral programs, stakeholders engagement, as well as measurement and reporting.  

Who benefits from LaBanca RG activities?  

RG is the core component of the main sustainability and CSR strategy of La Banca. We consider the impact our company operations have in three contexts: social, economic and environmental. We respond to the material issues of our organization and stakeholder needs, for instance, market research with customers and the community; work climate studies with employees; supplier evaluations, and training and workshops with problem gambling treatment centers.

This means that our RG activities benefit the whole of society. The well-being of people is at the core of our work and greatly influences our CSR policy.  

We develop and offer our games, taking all RG recommendations and best practices on board, so that we can guarantee the protection of vulnerable groups and minimize any possible harm.

Have you experienced any challenges along the way to achieving level 4 and how did you overcome them?

We have faced challenges from the outset, as we began to adopt the WLA RG Framework in 2010. At that time, we studied and benchmarked ourselves with other lotteries in Europe and Canada, who were more advanced along the certification path than us.  

During this process we evolved and transformed with a vision founded on solid ethical values, where philanthropy was very important. We are a company with a vision of sustainability, and being responsible for the impact we have on society. We try to minimize negative effects and enhance benefits to have as positive an impact as possible. This is a very big challenge and there is much to be done to continually improve.

This vision of sustainability is necessary to transform the paradigms of traditional business forms, allowing for the integration of a holistic and comprehensive view of the needs of all stakeholders –employees, clients, retailers, owners, and regulators.

A challenge we face today is to raise awareness about the risks of gambling among our legislators. We must do this to ensure that when they develop regulations, the principles of RG are on the table so that we can provide our market with adequate gambling offers, while RG policies remain effective.  

Another important issue for RG is to implement effective measures to combat illegal gambling. This can be done by blocking websites and advertising, stopping the use of certain payment methods, and issuing fines to those acting illegally.  

Do you use technologies such as AI or others to develop safe, responsible gaming environments for your customers?

One of the outstanding characteristics of our company is its own game development and technology.  

When designing our games, we apply specific tools to measure the risks they may have for vulnerable people, and we apply the necessary RG measures to adjust those characteristics of the game. We also provide different self-limitation and self-exclusion tools for our online users, and other mandatory limits and alert messages.  

We are currently incorporating behavior monitoring software, developed locally in Uruguay, with the advice of international experts. These are based on preventive algorithms that raise awareness of potential issues, by sending alerts and recommendation messages so that players know how much time they have spent online, and the amount of money lost, as well as taking measures to other than alerts to prevent harm.  

What are some of the key RG aspects you will focus on in the year ahead?

We have some very interesting projects ahead. But one of the main programs we are focusing on, which I really like, is prevention, in particular, a youth addiction prevention workshop.

We have just started a cycle of workshops offered in educational centers of Uruguay, with a well-known psychologist, who uses an excellent approach in social networks. These workshops are carried out at three levels, for: parents, educators and adolescent students. They aim to raise awareness about the problems of addictions, in particular, of gambling.