GAT Expo Cartagena closes 25th edition with presence of authorities from the region, executives from 37 countries

The 25th edition of GAT Expo 2024, which took place between April 9 and 11 at the Las Américas Convention Center in Cartagena de Indias, concluded and brought together manufacturers, suppliers, authorities, unions, and visitors from companies from all over Latin America. Attendees were able to network and share activities at the different stands, as well as participate in the academic session held during the first day of the expo, with more than 35 speakers from all over the region.

The fair registered an increase of 25% over the previous edition in terms of its exhibition area, with a large participation of groups of Latin American operators, mainly from Argentina, Peru, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic.

José Aníbal Aguirre, CEO of Gaming & Technology Expo, said: "I am especially pleased with the content and intellectual height we were able to offer in the conferences and panels on April 9. It was extraordinary to capture the attention of those present and to witness the interest in each of the topics announced.

"A great start was the judicious conference of Coljuegos since it presented in a detailed and punctual way the situation of this important line of the economy and each of the verticals that integrate it in our country, and the clear interest in achieving improvements in processes and control of illegality."

He added: "The president of the entity, Marco Emilio Hincapié, suggested the creation of a Latin American commission of regulators to unify regulatory criteria, an idea that has received many voices of support. From there, the initiative has also arisen to periodically hold a summit of Latin American associations to contribute the vision of the operators in each of our countries, on the state of the industry in their nation."

Furthermore, the organization highlighted the presence of executives from the main regulators and associations in the region. Some of them were present for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, such as the President of Coljuegos; the Director of the Information and Financial Analysis Unit UIAF of the Ministry of Finance, Luis Eduardo Llinás; the President of Asojuegos, Juan Carlos Restrepo; the President of Cornazar, Elizabeth Maya; the President of Fecoljuegos, Evert Montero; and the President of Fedelco, Rubén Lagarejo. Also, for the first time, Miguel Ángel Ochoa from AIEJA Mexico, Fernando Calderón and José Casapía from SONAJA Peru, and Carlos Augusto Liseras from CONAJZAR Paraguay were present at the ceremony.

According to statistics from the registration of attendees, GAT summoned executives from 37 countries: Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Ecuador, England, France, Cayman Islands, Italy, Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, South Africa, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Uruguay, Venezuela, USA and, obviously, Colombia.

The main players in the sector were represented with their stands. Brands with a presence in the casinos of Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Paraguay, and Panama, such as Novomatic, IGT, Win Systems, and Merkur, brought their latest novelties.

Another outstanding presence was that of Pragmatic Play, Premium Sponsor of GAT Events, with an innovative booth: a double structure open on several sides and a group of sales executives led by Victor Arias, VP of Operations Latam. Other Sponsors such as BetConstruct, Evolution, Betplay, Aristocrat, and PlaylogiQ also stood out with their stands. Altenar, GLI Labs, and WA Technology demonstrated their experience in corporate conferences.

Gaming & Technology Expo still has three more appointments for 2024. Bogota is the next stop, at the Sheraton Bogota Hotel on September 6. Then, the GAT events will arrive in Santo Domingo on September 18 and 19 at the Renaissance Hotel and will culminate the year with the first version of GAT Caribe Cancun on November 27 and 28.

Inside GAT Cartagena 2024