In Brazil, the impact of sports betting has been devastating. Agency, Tech&Soul; B3, Brazil’s stock exchange; and investment company, Genial Investimentos, have joined forces to present a healthier alternative to the growing online betting market – the Detox Bet campaign. The Detox Bet hijacked online sports betting with a no loss, no real money stock market game that created interest in investing.
The hub of the campaign is the Ação Premiada (Prized Action) project, by Genial Investimentos. It gamifies the investment experience, generating engagement similar to sports betting – but with one crucial difference: it does not involve real-money gambling. Participants can make predictions about the performance of financial assets and compete for cash prizes while learning about the stock market, without the risks associated with traditional betting.
The partnership between B3 and Genial Investimentos also included a neuroscience-based experiment conducted by IBN (Brazilian Institute of Neuromarketing and Neuroeconomics) to analyse participants’ emotional responses when interacting with traditional betting and Ação Premiada. The study monitored brain waves (EEG) and heart activity (ECG) of people with varying levels of knowledge about betting and financial markets during simulated betting scenarios.
Participants showed a positive emotional response, such as happiness and excitement, when interacting with Ação Premiada. More importantly, the experience with Genial’s platform resulted in a more balanced emotional profile, with positive peaks and significantly lower levels of fear, anxiety, and stress compared to traditional betting. Overall, positive emotion scores were consistently higher in Ação Premiada.
The study also found that the sense of pleasure provided by Ação Premiada increases significantly as participants’ knowledge of the financial market grows, surpassing the pleasure generated by betting. This finding highlights the platform’s potential to turn bettors into investors.
“The creative idea behind Detox Bet was to combine B3’s mission of promoting financial education with Genial’s original Ação Premiada concept. ‘Detox’ because Ação Premiada does not involve real-money betting—only predictions about stock performance. To have a chance of winning, participants must follow and deepen their understanding of how the stock market works. This ‘detox’ is important for those who have become addicted to gambling—an alternative to excess,“ explained Flavio Waiteman, partner and CCO of Tech&Soul. “The results show that Ação Premiada offers a more balanced and healthier alternative for those looking to engage with the financial market, without the high stress levels associated with traditional betting.”
This joint initiative by B3 and Genial Investimentos aims to debunk the false equivalence between gambling and investing, paving the way for new investors through accessible and engaging language.
“Initiatives like this study help us understand the neurological triggers in people who gamble and, based on them, improve our investment offerings—whether in platforms, usability, products, or educational tools. Our goal is to expand and create pathways to attract and educate investors. We are ready and eager to contribute even more to financial education in our country,” stated Ana Buchaim, vice president of people, communication, marketing, sustainability, and private social investment at B3.
“Our goal is to make the financial world more accessible and interesting, encouraging both beginners and experienced investors to deepen their knowledge without any financial risk,” added Rodolfo Riechert, CEO of Genial Investimentos.
Credits:
Clients: B3 & Genial Investimentos
B3 Team: Ana Buchaim, Bruna de Caro, Patrícia Viegas, Fábio Mendonça and Fernanda Lemos, Janaina Vilella, Maria Rita Teixeira Afonso, Guilherme Lima, Carlos Cristofanilli, Stefany Tangi and Isabella Tramontino.
Genial Investimentos Team: Luciano Faustino, Cadu Vigilia, Gabriela Leite and Camila Splichal
Agency: Tech&Soul
CCO: Flavio Waiteman
CEO: Claudio Kalim
COO & CFO: Marcelo Zaine
Business General Director: Liliany Samarão
ECD: Daniel Magri
Creative Director: Ricardo Andrés
Art Directors: Marcelo Guimarães, Bruno Oliveira
Copywriter: Brayhan Oviedo
Content Creative Director: Ricardo Miller
Community Manager: Larissa Navarro
Project Manager: Patrícia Goulart
Genial Investimentos Creative Team: Luciano Faustino & Cadu Vigilia
FCB Lisboa
Creative: Edson Athayde
Project Director: Cristiane Petrucci
Account Director: Marina Lacerda
Account Manager: Jéssica Carvalho
Account Supervisor: Lara Avansini
Media Director: Eric Zanelli
Media Supervisor: João Vitor
BI Media Director: Lucas Cruz
BI Manager: Rodolfo Meloque
BI Specialist: Renato Margoni
Planning Director: Vanessa Patino
Executive Producer: João Pedro Albuquerque
Production Director: Rogerio Gonçalves
Production Supervisor: Leticia Bamonte
Production Company: Arapiraca
Director & Photographer: Enio Berwanger
Production Director: Marcos Viana
Editing, Colour & Post-Production: Forlan Magalhães
Audio Production: Blood Audio
Music Direction: Otavio de Moraes & Cezar Brandão
Executive Producer: Dani Monaco
