Ecuador Casino Bonuses

Sign-Up Bonuses

As the name suggests, welcome bonuses – also referred to as first-deposit or sign-up bonuses – are promotions offered by online casinos to their newly registered customers. They usually come in the form of extra credit that you can use for additional reel spins or wagers on table games. You can withdraw your winnings once you have played enough and met the stated wagering requirements.

Loyalty Programs

These programs are designed for gambling enthusiasts with long-standing experience at a specific online casino. Loyalty schemes usually have several tiers, and advancing to a higher level occurs after you accumulate a certain number of comp points. Perks can include reduced wagering requirements, higher withdrawal limits, exclusive game tournaments, tickets to concerts and sporting events, and more.

The End of the Casino Industry in Ecuador

You might wonder what would make a government shut down an industry that pours millions of dollars into state coffers and employs thousands of citizens. Years ago, many casinos in Ecuador and other South American countries were owned by organized crime groups operating through shell companies, turning them into hotbeds of criminal activity, corruption, and money laundering. Rafael Correa, leader of the PAIS Alliance, was elected president in 2007 and set out to address the issue.

His approach, however, proved far more extreme than that of his counterparts in neighboring countries. Instead of introducing restrictive measures and reforms, Rafael Correa made it his mission to dismantle the gambling industry in Ecuador. Just a year after taking office, he limited casinos to 5-star hotels – only the first step in his campaign. In May 2011, a nationwide referendum asked: “Do you agree that businesses devoted to games of chance, such as casinos and slot machine parlors, should be banned?” Although it passed by a narrow margin and was followed by protests, the referendum effectively ended the gambling industry in Ecuador.

Lottery Games

The national lottery, Lotería Nacional, is the sole operator authorized to offer lottery services to Ecuadorians. It partners with Scientific Games, which supplies instant games, lottery systems, and retail technology. This collaboration has lasted for more than 20 years and includes business intelligence software and an instant game management system, enabling the launch of electronic draw games in Ecuador for the first time. The national lottery is directly supervised by the government.

Lottery tickets can be purchased both in person and online. Outside of Lotería Nacional, Ecuador has no other licensed online lottery operators. Fortunately, local users are free to participate in draws hosted by international lottery websites. Powerball, Mega Millions, and Lotto America are just a few of the foreign lotteries from which Ecuadorian players can purchase tickets.

Online Gambling

The 2011 gambling ban discussed above did not affect online gambling, leaving the legal status of foreign web-based casinos ambiguous. In fact, there has never been a licensing process for online gambling operators. Because these companies are based abroad, their activities are not considered to violate Ecuadorian gambling regulations, so their services remain widely available in the country. One explanation for this inconsistency is that the platforms use international IP addresses, allowing residents of Ecuador to access their sites; the activity would be illegal if they used a local IP address.

Moreover, there is no policing of Ecuadorian players, who can place bets without fear of penalties. Interestingly, despite the prohibition on all gambling activities (except the lottery), Ecuador’s Internal Revenue Service (SRI) has imposed a value-added tax (VAT) on eight online betting operators.