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The UK Gambling Commission’s Head of Evidence Assurance and Evaluation, David Taylor, has outlined the commission’s “proportionate approach” to evaluating the potential measures of the Gambling Act Review and their effectiveness.

Taylor noted that the UKGC’s involvement in the changes to gambling regulation in the UK does not end once the changes have been implemented, as alongside the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, they will need to monitor and evaluate the measures carefully.

Highlighting proposed changes to UK gambling such as when and how companies interact with customers as well as product content rules in land-based and remote gaming, the UKGC’s evidence head stated that it must be evaluated if the measures are producing the desired effect.

Taylor said: “We need to establish if they are being delivered effectively, understand if they are achieving their intended outcomes and impacts, identify any unintended consequences, and capture learning to inform the implementat..

EveryMatrix has officially opened a new eco-friendly office in Bucharest, Romania, in addition to reaching the milestone of 1,000 employees.

The igaming supplier’s more than 400 employees based in Bucharest now have a new “modern, eco-conscious” working space, which was constructed in collaboration with STRABAG Real Estate.

The building – Arghezi 4 – is located near University Square, with a large in-house gym, spa, pool, garden and state-of-the-art amenities across six dedicated floors, as well as free electric car charging points for all staff to encourage switching from fossil-fuelled transport.

The building also has a LEED V4 Gold green certification, meeting sustainable construction practices to minimise environmental and human health risks, as well as using building materials and construction methods that are not harmful to the climate and environment.

“Building our own HQ has been very exciting but has equally involved a great deal of work,” noted Ebbe Groes, Group CEO of ..

A monitoring and evaluation plan for the UK Gambling Act review will be developed by the National Centre for Social Research, a not-for-profit social research organisation.

NatCen has been commissioned by the Department of Culture, Media & Sport and the UK Gambling Commission to produce the plan to “establish the evaluation design to address how effective the Gambling Act review has been in preventing gambling-related harm to vulnerable groups and wider communities, gambling behaviours and the gambling market”.

“We are delighted to work on this project, to develop this monitoring and evaluation plan of the vital Gambling Act review,” commented Dr Sokratis Dinos, Director of Health Policy at NatCen.

“The past decade has seen a significant shift in the perspective of gambling harms, and this contract is pivotal in providing feasible approaches and practical recommendations.”

NatCen’s evaluation of the Gambling Act review will consider if the “appropriate balance” has been taken into ..

The Dutch General Administrative Service has named Michel Groothuizen as Chair of the country’s gambling authority, the Kansspelautoriteit.

Responsible for the establishment of the KSA back in 2012, Groothuizen will replace René Jansen as Chair of the authority later this year, after Jansen announced back in October that he would not be standing for re-election.

A lawyer and public administration expert, Groothuizen has been a member of the main board of the Judicial Institutions Service as Deputy Director General for the past four years.

In addition, he has also been General Director of the Netherlands Institute for Forensic Psychiatry, Policy Director and Director of FEZ in the administrative department of JenV, as well as a Deputy Judge at the Arnhem Court of Appeal for 15 years.

Commenting on the role, Groothuizen said: “Old love never dies. From 2007 onwards, as policy director, I was responsible, among other things, for the gambling dossier. One of my tasks was to establish ..

The Betting and Gaming Council has announced a sponsorship deal to help fundraise for several military charities at this year’s Leicester Racecourse Veterans’ Day.

With military veterans invited to the Racecourse as guests of honour, the BGC has heralded today’s (March 8) event as providing a vital opportunity to give back to a community that has ‘sacrificed so much on behalf of this nation’s safety, security and prosperity’.

The gambling trade body is also set to return as sponsor for the BGC Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre Handicap Chase, having sponsored the race at last year’s event.

Brigid Simmonds OBE, BGC Chairman, commented: “As a very proud former Captain in the Women’s Royal Army Corps, it gives me enormous pleasure that the Betting and Gaming Council is able to once again sponsor Veterans’ Day at Leicester Racecourse this week, giving us another fantastic opportunity to salute this nation’s special ex-Forces community.

“It is the very least we can do for a communi..

The Australian Government’s Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre has begun an investigation into bet365 regarding its compliance with the country’s Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act.

AUSTRAC has stated that its investigation into bet365 – the trading name of Hillside (New Media) Limited – will focus on whether the operator has “complied with its obligations” under the AML/CTF Act.

In addition, the investigation “follows a supervisory campaign of entities within the corporate bookmaker sector and AUSTRAC’s consideration of the external audit report received following AUSTRAC’s order to bet365 to appoint an external auditor”.

AUSTRAC noted that it has a variety of regulatory tools and enforcement powers at its disposal and it “will not hesitate to take action where suspected non-compliance is identified”.

“Corporate bookmakers must have robust systems in place to ensure they can manage and mitigate risks associated with money laundering and terrorism fina..

FanDuel has deepened its focus on social responsibility through a series of initiatives.

In conjunction with Problem Gambling Awareness Month, the group will focus on financial support and raising awareness of the importance of responsible play.

Strengthening the focus further, FanDuel also confirmed it is uniting with Kindbridge Behavioral Health (Kindbridge), a mental health service provider dedicated to supporting individuals facing challenges related to problem gambling.

The initial phase of the relationship will focus on a pilot program in New Jersey and Ohio that supports self-excluded players with direct access to comprehensive mental health assessments and group support services.

Alison Kutler, Vice President, Sustainability and Responsible Gaming for FanDuel, commented: “Our team works year-round at FanDuel to equip and support our customers to play responsibly.

“As we mark Problem GamblingAwareness Month, I’m excited to work with a growing roster of partners to expand ..

Within its recent financial results, Portugal’s gambling regulator, Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos, has reported that online self-exclusion registrants reached 215,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023.

In addition, the regulator noted that while online gaming gross revenue improved year-over-year by over 16 per cent, land-based gaming revenue dropped by almost four per cent.

Publishing data for Q4, the SRIJ declared a 16.4 per cent increase in gross revenue when compared to the previous year, coming in at €227.4m (Q4 2022: €195.3m). Q4’s revenue was also a 5.6 per cent improvement on the previous quarter’s €215.3m.

From the 17 licensed games of chance operators and 13 licensed sportsbooks in Portugal, games of chance revenue stood at €154.5m, up 40.7 per cent YoY (Q4 2022: €109.8m), while sports betting revenue fell by 14.8 per cent to €72.8m (Q4 2022: €85.4m).

Per gaming type, slots had the biggest share of games of chance wagers placed during the quarter at 83 per cent, fo..

Belgium has revised regulations within its gambling act to improve player protection, confirming that the legal gambling age will be raised from 18 to 21.

The modifications to the Belgium Gambling Act have been posted in a press release on the Gaming Commission’s website following their publication in the Belgium Official Gazette.

Set to come into force on September 1, 2024, the commission stated that the new laws include:

prohibition of devices “3.3”

ban on the cumulation of online licences on the same website

ban on gifts/bonuses/free games

ban in principle on advertising games of chance

age limit of 21 years and refund in case of no control

In addition, the commission said that it is seeking “the attention of licence holders E to the adjustments required for bingo and reduced-stakes gaming devices operated in Class III gaming establishments, so that the necessary adjustments to these devices can be implemented in a timely manner”.

The new measures are being implemented with..