SBC News

Poland seeks for EU member states to “harmonise and deepen” collaborative efforts to combat illegal online gambling, which is reported to cost Eurozone nations an estimated €7.2bn in lost tax revenues.

Since 1 January, Poland has held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, setting the agenda for the first half of 2025 for the bloc and its economic union, in which it has chosen to raise the EU’s exposure to online gambling threats via the black market.

The EU’s growing exposure to illegal online gambling is viewed as an integrity and economic threat, with member states limited in binding solutions to arrest and prosecute black-market actors.

Poland calls on member states to view illegal online gambling as an EU-wide threat, which requires harmonised regulations and enforcement practices to combat illegal entities targeting EU consumers with no binding restrictions.

Poland has proposed the creation of a dedicated working group under the European Commission to tackle ill..

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has fined Greentube Alderney Ltd £1 million for failing to meet anti-money laundering (AML) and social responsibility standards.

Greentube Alderney, which operates the Admiral Casino brand, breached AML rules for the reported period of September 2022 to June 2023.

The Commission deemed that Greentube had failed to properly scrutinise information, causing delays in identifying and escalating money laundering or terrorism financing risks. It also ignored its own policies on “risky occupations”, such as failing to flag a customer’s role as a finance manager, which could suggest access to misappropriated or laundered funds.

The company did not act promptly to investigate and escalate suspicious accounts. In one case, it overlooked an account linked to another customer with the same address and surname, who had a conviction for supplying Class A drugs.

John Pierce, the Commission’s Director of Enforcement, said this penalty follows a compliance assessme..

The Secretariat for Prizes and Betting (SPA) has established a new ‘strategic unit’ to oversee the fiscal compliance and licensing obligations of operators authorised to participate in the Brazil Bets market.

The unit, named ‘GTI-Bets’, has been formed through a cooperative arrangement with the Federal Revenue Service. As detailed by SBC Notícias Brazil: “GTI-Bets aims to monitor the behaviour of the online gaming and sports betting sector concerning fiscal compliance and the maintenance of requirements for authorised legal entities.”

Beyond its monitoring role, the unit will support Brazilian authorities and investigative bodies in identifying illegal activities that threaten the integrity of the Bets market, including money laundering, criminal transactions, and unlicensed operations.

The Federal Revenue Service supported the creation of GTI-Bets to enhance tax efficiencies related to the period before authorisation for entities operating within the Bets market.

GTI-Bets will com..

GAMSTOP has announced that a record number of people signed up to the national self-exclusion scheme at the start of 2025.

In the biggest daily figures since its inception in 2018, the company saw 415 people signing up on 1 January, followed by 413 new registrants on 2 January and 396 on 6 January – the 3 highest daily registration figures since May 2023.

Gamstop Group CEO, Fiona Palmer, commented: “We have come a very long way since our launch in April 2018, but our journey doesn’t stop there.

“Our goal is to provide consumers with tools and options that empower them to take control of their gambling activity. As such, we’re consistently listening to feedback and evaluating the effectiveness of our service.”

Meanwhile, in a continued effort to support vulnerable consumers, GAMSTOP has introduced a new ‘five years with auto-renewal’ option, which the firm said is aimed at vulnerable consumers looking to extend their exclusion from gambling websites and apps.

“Consumers wanted long..

GambleAware has accepted the resignation of Baroness Hilary Armstrong as a trustee of the charity leading the UK public health strategy for the prevention, treatment, and research of problem gambling harms.

A trustee of GambleAware since 2021, Baroness Armstrong has accepted the role of Founding Chair of the government’s newly established Digital Inclusion Action Committee.

Set up as a new agency of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Digital Inclusion Action Committee will serve as the government’s advisory body of experts to scrutinise, steer, and help determine the government’s efforts to reduce digital exclusion.

A Labour MP from 1987 to 2010, she has served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Minister for the Cabinet Office, and Minister for Social Exclusion under Prime Minister Tony Blair.

The committee reflects the increasing importance of digital inclusion on the agenda of all levels of government due to its strong influence on social inclusion a..

Paraguay will begin to overhaul its gambling laws in 2025, as President Santiago Peña has approved the bill to “establish a new legal regime for the exploitation of games of chance”.

Endorsed by President Peña and the Ministry of Finance, the measures and amendments carried by the bill received federal approval from Paraguay’s National Congress in December.

Changes introduced by the bill will allow Paraguay’s government to de-monopolise its gambling sector as measures introduce new competition in the lottery and sports betting sectors, expanding from one to three licensees.

In 2024, proceedings saw President Peña forced to intervene in the passage of the bill, as its review had been stalled by the Constitutional Affairs Committee.

The bill also seeks to open the gambling market by removing existing monopolies and allowing unlimited licences for sports betting and other games. Additionally, it proposes regulations for online gambling and betting to keep pace with technological advan..

Effective from 1 January 2025, Spelinspektionen, Sweden’s Gambling Inspectorate will apply new fees and rules on the supervision of licensed businesses under the authorisation of the Swedish Gambling Act 2018.

Key changes see the scope of gambling fees under the Gambling Act broadened to cover the supervision of licenses and permits issued for B2B gambling software providers.

In 2022 the Swedish government approved for B2B licence authorisations to be imposed on software provider servicing Swedish online gambling operators, as a measure sought by the Ministry of Finance.

Taking effect on 1 July 2023, a fee SEK 120,000 (€12,000) was imposed on individual licences of software providers to cover inspection costs of Spelinspektionen. As such the Inspectorate has expanded its approach to introduce a detailed structure of fees and payment terms, ensuring all licensed entities contribute fairly to the regulatory oversight.

The new fee system categorises payments based on the type of licen..

On Friday, 3 January, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine signed into law new gambling amendments to improve the “state’s regulation of gambling and lotteries.”

Grabbing international news headlines, Zelenskyy approved the Rada’s decision to “dissolve KRAIL,” the Gambling and Lotteries Authority of Ukraine, and establish a new regulator, scheduled to take effect by April.

Zelenskyy’s signature ends the problematic tenure of KRAIL as the gambling authority of Ukraine, as allegations of corruption and bribery had hounded the agency prior to Russia’s invasion in the winter of 2022.

The dire circumstances of war saw Ukraine’s gambling licences come under the scrutiny of the intelligence agency of the National Security and Defence Council (NSDC), which imposed sanctions on multiple incumbents, placing strict restrictions and limitations on gambling transactions.

Such consequences required the Rada to amend the Gambling Law of 2020 to revise conditions for a disrupted industry engag..

The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Gambling Authority of the Netherlands, has issued a €1m fine to the Curaçao-licensed online gambling group Alimaniere Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada, which operates as Alimaniere Ltd.

The €1m fine relates to Dutch players gambling on the unlicensed website time2spin.com, which is recognised as a subsidiary of Alimaniere Ltd.

Despite the website being IP-blocked, a KSA investigation revealed that “the provider had created another website, timetospin1.com. Dutch players could use the account they had previously created on the other website.”

The KSA has taken action to block both websites. The €1m penalty was imposed due to the combined unlicensed activities of both websites operated by Alimaniere Ltd.

The statement highlighted that the KSA had evidence “that there were various factors which resulted in a higher fine than the basic fine of €600,000 being imposed.”

Last week, the KSA sanctioned a new ‘General Policy of Fines’ for its governance..

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

The Honours List for 2025 has awarded Osmond an Order of the British Empire (OBE) for exemplary services in tackling and treating problem gambling harms and addiction.

Publishing a statement, 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 development of the National Gamblin..