iGamingExpert

Neosurf CEO Andrea McGeachin was joined by Craig Cornforth, Senior Business Development Manager for EPIC Global Solutions, to share his journey with gambling addiction and recovery on the latest episode of iGaming Daily.

Reflecting on his experience with problem gambling, Cornforth explained that it began for him during the rise of online gambling.

He said: “The emergence of online gambling really suited my personality. The challenge of that and the accessibility, I think, was the main difference for me. So it manifested in me [losing] my house, my job and I very nearly went to jail. I had a really good job that I loved and was very successful at, and I ended up stealing money from that business to fund what became the only thing in the world that was important to me which was gambling.”

Cornforth began his road to recovery in October 2017 when he placed his last bet and since then he has joined EPIC Global Solutions, a company that delivers solutions to prevent gambling-related ha..

Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) Chair Michel Groothuizen has promised tough action against any licensee that violates its advertising regulations in the Netherlands gambling market.

Published on the Dutch Gaming Authority’s website, Groothuizen’s speech to the online industry was delivered at the Annual Gaming Industry Event at the Koninklijke Industrieele Groote Club in Amsterdam.

During the speech, the KSA Chair highlighted the authority’s recently published Supervisory Agenda for 2025 and its key points of focus being advertising compliance, minors and young adults, duty of care supervision and combating the illegal market.

For advertising, Groothuizen emphasised that the authority is going to be tougher on those who look to “push the boundaries” and that one licence holder has already received a hefty fine this year, although that licensee was not named.

“We’re going to crack down harder on parties that push the boundaries again and have also imposed a hefty fine on a license holder t..

Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Dutch Gaming Authority, has issued a fine of €1.275m to Winning Poker Network (WPN) for allowing Dutch players to play on its websites without the necessary licence.

In a statement, the KSA noted that players in the Netherlands could access WPN’s americascardroom website and gamble illegally. The authority then informed WPN that it intended to impose a penalty payment order and block access to the website.

The authority’s statement said that WPN owns several websites, including truepoker, which are illegal in the Netherlands. The KSA stated that this website remained available to Dutch people, so it still imposed a penalty payment and said it would stop all WPN sites.

Alongside the penalty payment, the KSA also said that sanctions can be imposed for the length of time in which the illegal offer was available, which it says is also the case here.

Through its investigation, the KSA stated that it found eight violations of aggravating circumstances by WP..

The Singapore government has cracked down on illegal gambling by banning over 3,800 illicit websites.

Assessing that the banned websites target Singapore gamblers, the Ministry of Home Affairs has blocked the websites as of 31 December 2024.

Singapore’s Government suggested that the websites may have contributed to more than 145,000 illegal gambling transactions involving the Singapore public, amounting to approximately SGD$37m (£22m).

“These blocking measures have impeded access to illegal online gambling to some extent,” a statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs read.

“However, this approach is clearly not foolproof as illegal operators can easily create new websites, and we do not have the ability to know of every gambling website.

“We encourage members of the public to report illegal gambling websites, apps, and advertisements, as well as bank accounts used by illegal gambling operators, to the police.”

The Government body also responded to a question from a Mr Yip Hon..

A study by iGamingAfrika and Sharp Vision has revealed a surge of betting engagement from young players in Kenya.

Seeking to gain a deeper understanding of the African gambling market and trends amongst players in the region, the study detailed that more than 70% of players utilised mobile as their preferred platform.

This comes as networks and connections in Africa have improved significantly in recent years – a major contribution to the potential growth of the gaming industry and elevating engagement from players in the region.

As well as this it was found that the younger generation of players are embracing gambling products with 50% of 18 to 35 year-olds stating that they had played some form of gambling in the past year.

Angela Mwelu Senior Vice President of Business Development Africa stated that the results mark “a transformative shift in the Kenya gambling landscape”, she emphasised that the trend needs to be harnessed to implement safer gambling protections and protect..

Hub88 Head of Sales Natasha Giorgio, sat down with SBC Leaders to analyse the current state of the igaming market and why the role of payment options is crucial to the industry’s next evolution.

She also emphasised the importance of streamlining the onboarding process for igaming customers at a time when the market is becoming increasingly competitive.

What are the key issues facing operators in the iGaming sector?

The iGaming sector faces several significant challenges. One major issue is inconsistent rules and regulations across different regions.

In some territories, the legality of gambling is heavily restricted, which naturally makes it difficult for operators to plan long-term strategies or even to comply with the law consistently. Another challenge is responsible gaming requirements, especially concerning younger audiences who may be turning to other forms of entertainment. The onboarding process for iGaming platforms is often cumbersome, which can deter new customers.
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Greentube Alderney Limited has been ordered to pay £1m by the UK Gambling Commission after an investigation highlighted social responsibility and anti-money laundering failures.

In a statement on its website, the UKGC detailed that Greentube Alderney, trading as Admiral Casino, will pay the £1m to socially responsible causes as part of a settlement agreement.

Listed social responsibility failures by the operator included not fully implementing: policy for ensuring customer limits are based on regular, sustainable income instead of one-off or irregular forms of income; processes to ensure customers provided genuine documents; and controls to spot indicators of vulnerability or potential harm promptly.

For the latter, the Commission provided an example in which a customer “supplied a bank statement as proof of address that had a negative opening and closing balance and included numerous transactions to another gambling operator, but the information was not reviewed or escalated until..

From January 1, 2025, Spelinspektionen, Sweden’s Gambling Inspectorate, will implement new fees and rules to oversee licensed businesses under the Swedish Gambling Act 2018.

The updated framework broadens the scope of gambling fees to include supervising licenses and permits issued to B2B gambling software providers. In 2022, the Swedish government decided to impose B2B license requirements on software providers serving Swedish online gambling operators. This measure, recommended by the Ministry of Finance, aims to enhance regulatory oversight.

As of July 1, 2023, Spelinspektionen introduced a fee of SEK 120,000 (€12,000) for individual software provider licenses to cover inspection costs. To ensure fairness, the Inspectorate expanded its fee structure, detailing payment terms so that all licensed entities contribute equitably to regulatory oversight.

The new fee system categorizes payments based on license type or permit, and sometimes business turnover. B2B software providers must..

GambleAware Chief Executive Zoë Osmond has was named in the New Year Honours List of appointments made by King Charles III.

Given for exemplary services in tackling and treating problem gambling harms and addiction, Osmond was given an Order of the British Empire (OBE), in a significant testament to her work in the sector.

Following the news, Osmond thanked all organisations and stakeholders supporting GambleAware in combating gambling harms across local communities:

“I am deeply humbled and honoured to receive this OBE. This is recognition of the tireless efforts of the whole team at GambleAware, our partners, and the wider lived experience community who have shared their personal stories and insights with the hope of reducing gambling-related harm across Great Britain.”

Osmond has served as CEO of GambleAware since 2021, overseeing the charity’s transformation and the expansion of a new national strategy to reduce gambling harms.

As CEO, Osmond has overseen GambleAware’s develo..

The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI), has emphasised the importance of collaboration as the financial and banking sector strengthens safeguards against problem gambling.

The group’s CEO, Anne-Marie Caufield lauded the potential impact of a voluntary block feature on gambling transactions introduced by AIB and EBS, two of the biggest banks in the Republic of Ireland.

It’s a step that comes off the back of research from Ireland’s Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), which detailed that the average spend by people experiencing gambling harm is €1,000.

Caufield stated: “We welcome the introduction by AIB and EBS of a voluntary block feature on debit and credit card transactions which are classified as linked to gambling. Revolut also gives customers the ability to implement a gambling block on their account.

“We are engaging with the Banking Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI) and directly with pillar banks to encourage other financial institutions to intro..