TLDR Panama’s gambling market grew 16.5% to 1.6 billion balboas in the first half of 2026 Online gambling revenue jumped 59.8% to 379.75 million balboas Slot machines and table games also posted gains during the period Lottery sales, racetrack betting, and instant games all declined Suspicious transaction reports tied to gambling rose 58% compared to last year
Panama’s gambling and betting market grew 16.5% during the first half of 2026. Gross wagers reached 1.60783 billion balboas, up from 1.38020 billion balboas in the same period last year, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Census.
Online gambling led the growth. Internet-based games generated 379.75 million balboas in revenue, a jump of 59.8% from 237.62 million a year earlier.
The rise shows how much digital gambling has grown within Panama’s regulated market.
Slot Machines and Table Games Post Gains
Type “A” slot machines collected 1.11346 billion balboas in the first half of 2026. That marks a 7% increase from the 1.04036 billion balboas collected during the same period in 2025.
Table games brought in 87.42 million balboas, up 18.6% from 73.69 million the year before.
Bingo halls also grew, collecting 3.34 million balboas, a 6% rise from 3.16 million.
Sports event rooms saw a small dip. Revenue fell 0.8% to 9.14 million balboas, down from 9.22 million.
Not every category expanded. Lottery revenue dropped 4.1%, with total sales at 417.68 million balboas compared to 400.68 million a year earlier.
Betting at the Presidente Remón Racetrack fell 7.2% to 13.44 million balboas. Instant games saw the steepest drop, falling 23.5% to 1.28 million balboas.
Suspicious Transaction Reports Increase
Panama’s Financial Analysis Unit received 839 Suspicious Transaction Reports across financial and non-financial sectors in the first half of 2026.
Among non-financial sectors, gambling saw the largest jump in reports.