Legal & compliance Archives

July 31, 2023

Massachusetts casinos fined for college betting rule breaches

Three land-based casinos in Massachusetts have been fined for breaching state rules related to betting on college sports events.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) flagged MGM Springfield, Plainridge Park Casino and Encore Boston Harbor for separate offences.

Both Plainridge Park Casino and MGM Springfield were fined $20,000, while Encore Boston Harbor was handed a $10,000 penalty.

Each casino was penalised after allowing players to bet on regular-season games featuring teams from colleges in Massachusetts. State law prohibits wagering on events involving Massachusetts colleges unless it is part of a tournament of at least four teams.

The rules have been in place since the state opened its regulated sports wagering market in January this year. Retail betting launched first, followed by online in March.

Read the full story on iGB North America

July 25, 2023

NFL suspends Broncos’ Eyioma Uwazurike for betting violations

The National Football League (NFL) has indefinitely suspended Denver Broncos player Eyioma Uwazurike for betting violations.

The NFL confirmed the move in a statement, outlining that Uwazurike had been betting on NFL games during the 2022 season.

However, it was not confirmed which games he was betting on. It was also not confirmed whether his own team took part in these games.

Read the full story on iGB North America

July 13, 2023

Gambling Commission fines Star Racing £594,000

The GB Gambling Commission has issued a fine to Star Racing Limited for a series of anti-money laundering (AML) and social responsibility failings.

Star Racing, trading as Star Sports, will pay a penalty of £594,000 (€693,376/$772,840). It was also handed an official warning and had extra conditions added to its licence.

Setting out the charges, the Commission listed a number of failings that occurred between March 2020 and May 2021.

AML failures included having ineffective policies, procedures and controls in place at the time. Star Racing also allowed customers to deposit large amounts before obtaining source of funds information and failing to analyse source of funds information when it was obtained.

In terms of social responsibility failures, these included not demonstrating an understanding of the impact and effectiveness of customer interactions in terms of the minimisation of customer risk.

Licence breaches

Specific breaches noted in the case included Paragraphs 2 and 3 o..

July 11, 2023

Episode 19: Looking at Ontario’s legal gaming market with Paul Burns

Brendan Bussmann and Brandt Iden dive headfirst into Canada’s only open betting and gaming market with Paul Burns of the Canadian Gaming Association (CGA) in episode 19 of the World Series of Politics.

Paul shares his thoughts on the early stages of Ontario’s regulated market, pointing out that a strong channelisation rate suggests the Canadian province is making a successful leap from a grey to white market.

This, he explains, has levelled the field when it comes to advertising. That hasn’t prevented the naysayers from massing, however.

One of the opposition parties in the Ontario parliament has put forward a bill to ban gambling advertising – even though gaming only accounts for 3% of total ads shown in the country.

Listen to the World Series of Politics on Apple Podcasts

Looking forward, Burns assesses the future of Canadian gaming, examining the potential of sports betting and igaming in Ontario and beyond. With a foundation of responsible gaming standards and a commitment ..

July 11, 2023

Kentucky to launch legal sports betting on 7 September

Kentucky will launch legal retail sports betting on 7 September, with online wagering to follow on 28 September.

The schedule was agreed yesterday (10 July) by the state’s governor, Andy Beshear, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) and state lawmakers. This means Kentuckians can begin placing legal sports bets in less than 60 days.

This followed a KHRC meeting where members unanimously approved emergency administrative regulations to govern sports betting. Governor Beshear immediately signed off on these at Red Mile, a gaming and racing venue eligible to apply to be a sports betting location.

The 7 September launch date for retail comes just days before the start of both the 2023 NFL and collegiate football seasons.

Read the full story on iGB North America

July 5, 2023

Azartia Games secures Portuguese licences

Azartia Games, the company behind the Golden Park brand, has secured two new online gambling licences in Portugal.

The licences will enable Azartia Games to offer online sports betting and games of chance in the country. Azartia will operate via the Goldenpark.pt website.

Both licences were issued by national regulator Comissão de Jogos do Turismo de Portugal (SRIJ).

Azartia joins a host of other brands in securing approval to offer online gambling in Portugal. Other licensed operators include 888, Betway, Bwin, PokerStars and Betclic.

Another approved operator is Casino Solverde, which this week had its licence renewed.

Casino Solverde can continue to offer online sports betting to players in Portugal, as well as a range of casino games.

The casino games available at Casino Solverde include slots, blackjack and French roulette.

Market growth

The news comes after SRIJ last month announced growth in Portugal’s online betting and gaming market in Q1.

Gross gaming revenue (GGR)..

June 21, 2023

AGCO penalises BetVictor and Fitzdares over sports betting breaches

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has issued penalties to BetVictor operator BV Gaming and Fitzdares Canada for offering prohibited bets on major junior hockey.

Both operators allegedly offered bets on Canadian Hockey League (CHL) contests. These included Ontario Hockey League, Western Hockey League and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Bets were taken during the 2022-23 season.

This, AGCO said, violated standards that prohibit betting on minor league sports including the CGL’s three major junior hockey leagues. Specifically, Standard 4.34, paragraph 15 outlaws wagering on this level of sporting event.

As such, BV Gaming (BetVictor) and Fitzdares Canada were each ordered to pay a penalty of CA$15,000 (£8,913/€10,380/US$11,337).

Read the full story on iGB North America

June 21, 2023

Malta regulator cancels MKC Limited’s licence

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has cancelled MKC Limited’s licence after ruling that it breached a number of regulations.

Malta-based MKC had been operating the Betworld247 sports betting and casino site under its B2C gaming service licence. However, the regulatory decision means that it is no longer authorised to offer online gambling via this licence.

Setting out its decision, the MGA said MKC breached regulations 9(1)(c), (d), (i), (l) and 10(1)(a) of the Gaming Compliance and Enforcement Regulations.

Specific breaches included not making required licensing payments to the MGA and failure to meet other financial commitments related to its operations.

The regulator also flagged how MKC failed to meet commitments to customers in a timely manner but did not go into further detail.

“One of the grounds for suspension envisaged in regulation 9 arises and the Authority, in its sole discretion, determines that cancellation of the authorisation is the most appropriate measure,” the MG..

June 19, 2023

Sweden’s channelisation rate at “critically low” 77%

A report published by Sweden's Online Gaming Industry Association (BOS) has revealed that 77% of Sweden's online gaming market is channelised, a percentage the association called “critically low”.

Sweden’s channelisation goal – the percentage of licensed gaming offerings it wishes to have on the market – is currently set at 90%.

BOS commissioned Swedish survey organisation SKOP to analyse channelisation rates for online gaming in the country, looking at specific categories such as sports betting and online casino.

Gustaf Hoffstedt, secretary-general at BOS, emphasised the seriousness of the low channelisation rate.

“There is no doubt that the Swedish licensing system is in a serious situation,” said Hoffstedt. “Far too much power has been spent on the part of the state to force the licensed gambling companies to implement measures that have not been well received by gambling consumers.”

He added that reversing this development would require the regulator, Spelinspektione..

June 15, 2023

Vermont governor signs sports betting bill into law

Vermont has become the latest US state to legalise sports betting after governor Phil Scott signed a bill into law.

House Bill 127 was introduced earlier this year and passed through the state’s house and senate before landing on Scott’s desk last week.

Scott, a long-term supporter of sports betting, signed off on the bill yesterday (14 June), clearing the way for the market to open next year.

“I first proposed Vermont legalise sports betting several years ago and I’m happy the legislature has come to an agreement as well,” Scott said. “We know many Vermonters already participate in the marketplace and bringing it above board provides important resources and consumer protections.

“Vermont now joins many other states who have made this move, and I want to thank Commissioner [Wendy] Knight and her team, as well as members of the legislature for their collaborative approach on this issue.”

Read the full story on iGB North America

June 14, 2023

Gambling Related Harm APPG launches white paper inquiry

The Gambling Related Harm All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) has launched an inquiry into the British government’s Gambling Act white paper review.

Published in April, the long-awaited white paper covered a range of major topics regarding gambling and future regulation in Great Britain.

The APPG-led inquiry, which launched today (14 June), will assess all proposed measures put forward in the white paper. The inquiry will also seek to hold the government to account and ensure reforms are taken forward quickly.

In addition, the inquiry will ensure where commitments have been made to legislate “when parliamentary time allows”, these are pursued as a priority. These include handing greater powers to the Gambling Commission to support enforcement.

Evidence deadline

The APPG will hold a series of oral evidence sessions as part of the inquiry and also accept evidence or submissions from interested parties. Any feedback must be submitted by 11 July.

The inquiry will seek opinion on opt..

June 6, 2023

Sorare: From pressure point to new regulations

Sorare has updated its operating model in France, and gambling regulator ANJ is yet to confirm whether it meets its regulatory criteria, writes Jake Pollard. However, news that the French government is working to pass new regulations for Web3 “pioneers” shows how important the sector is to the French authorities.

In a statement posted on Medium, Sorare said it had updated its product roadmap as a “temporary solution”.

This decision was taken in accordance with “the French National Gaming Authority [l’Autorité National des Jeux (ANJ)] that creates an optional alternative method of entry for users based in France only”.

Essentially, Sorare has increased free-play access to its fantasy sports leagues for players in France. Even if the French language version of the company’s statement, unlike the English text, mentioned that the new method of entry would be available to players “without blockchain cards”.

A marker of regulatory pressure

Overall, the move by Sorare is a marker of t..

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Tag: Legal & compliance