Panama's Online Wagers Rise 53.7% to $626m as Licensed Betting Tops $2.49bn

Online play now accounts for one dollar in four wagered with Panama's licensed operators, against one in five a year ago. It earns far less per dollar than the slot halls, and its growth slowed sharply in September.

• Panama's licensed gambling operators took $2,493.0m of gross wagers from January to September 2026, up 16.6% from $2,138.6m a year earlier, according to official statistics compiled from Junta de Control de Juegos data
• Online wagers rose 53.7% to $626.2m, lifting online's share of the total to 25.1% from 19.1%, while Type A slot halls grew 7.5% to $1,698.3m
• Net wagers, the amount left after prizes are paid, rose a slower 7.6% to $295.1m, and online kept only 5.4% of what it took against 13.4% in the slot halls
• In September alone, online wagers grew 20.2% year on year, the weakest month of 2026, against 46.5% to 71.1% in every earlier month
• The figures arrive as Panama prepares regulations for Law 527, which gives the board power to order blocking of unlicensed betting sites and requires biometric age checks

Online Drove Panama's Nine Month Growth

The figures come from the monthly leisure activity tables of the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo (INEC), part of the Comptroller General's office, which cite the Ministry of Economy and Finance's Junta de Control de Juegos (JCJ) as their source. They are in thousands of balboas, which trade at par with the US dollar, and the 2026 figures are marked preliminary. The "apuestas" in these tables are gross wagers, not revenue: 53.7% is the growth in online stakes, and $2,492m is the gross stake across all licensed operators.

Online wagers reached $626.2m in the nine months, against $407.5m a year earlier and $240.0m in the same months of 2024. Type A slot halls, by far the largest segment, took $1,698.3m, up 7.5%. Table games rose 17.7% to $128.1m and the sports betting rooms 1.8% to $13.6m. The racetrack fell 7.7% to $20.2m and instant games 39.2% to $1.6m. Bingo halls took $5.0m.

The national lottery, reported separately, saw gross ticket sales fall 1.7% to $612.7m, with months swinging between gains and falls.

What the Operators Kept, and a Weaker September

INEC's companion table on net wagers, defined as gross wagers minus prizes paid, shows operators kept $295.1m, up 7.6% from $274.3m. Slot halls kept $227.6m, up 4.3%, and online kept $33.9m, up 43.4%. Online's net take was 5.4% of its wagers, down from 5.8%, against 13.4% for the slot halls and 18.6% for table games.

In September, operators took $285.1m, 13.1% more than a year earlier, and online took $78.6m, up 20.2%, after $84.0m in July and $83.9m in August. September 2025 had been the strongest month of last year for online, at $65.4m. The tables do not show how much the state collected from the operators.

Law 527 Gives the Board New Powers

Law 527, dated 23 May and published in the Gaceta Oficial on 28 May, treats problem gambling as a public health issue, according to La Estrella de Panamá. The newspaper reported that the law allows the JCJ to order the blocking of websites, apps, domains and IP addresses linked to unlicensed gambling, requires platforms to verify players' identity and age biometrically, and sets fines of 25,000 to 100,000 balboas for operators that breach its prevention measures. It gave the executive six months to issue regulations, a deadline that, counted from publication, falls at the end of November.

Online's Share Is Larger Than Its Earnings

Online took a quarter of Panama's licensed wagers but only 11.5% of what operators kept after prizes. A dollar staked online leaves the operator about five cents; a dollar in a slot hall leaves about thirteen. The 53.7% headline overstates online's economic weight, though its net take is also growing far faster than any land-based segment. Neighbours are already pricing that shift: Peru is weighing a bill to raise its tax on online bets from 1% to 5%.

One Month Does Not Make a Slowdown, But September Is Worth Watching

September's $78.6m was the lowest online month since May, but part of the weak growth rate is the base: online jumped in September 2025. The October figures will show whether the trend has bent.

Law 527 Lands on a Market That Is Now a Quarter Online

Online supplied $218.7m, about 62%, of the $354.3m rise in wagers. Biometric checks are likely to add friction to online sign-ups just as online becomes the main source of growth, and blocking powers only help the licensed market if they are used. The Dominican Republic has just listed its authorised online operators and flagged 81 without permits; Panama's regulations will show whether the JCJ intends the same. How the board uses its new powers will matter more to channelisation than the growth rate.

Online play has turned Panama's slot-hall market into a faster-growing mixed one, though on thinner margins. The regulations due under Law 527 will decide how much of the next year's growth stays licensed.