SBC News

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has once again asked customers to be aware of illegal websites as some have been found to be offering easily accessible deposits.

An investigation by the Observer revealed that a total of 10 unlicensed online gambling providers available to UK customers had incorporated Mastercard and Visa payments into their websites.

According to the investigation, several UK players had already fallen victim to the unregulated offering, losing thousands of pounds by being obstructed from withdrawing their winnings.

This is not surprising, given the fact that the black market lacks the safeguards against scams and financial fraud that regulated operators in the UK are required to adhere to as part of their licence conditions.

Referencing the illegal websites highlighted by the Observer, a spokesperson for the UKGC said: “We are aware of these websites and continue to take action to disrupt the unlicensed market, including working with online platforms and with ..

More protections are needed against the online black market, according to Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), Germany‘s gambling authority.

Together with representatives from the political, scientific and commercial fields, the authority participated in a series of discussions regarding online regulations during the Berlin Congress organised by the German gambling trade body DAW.

Ronald Benter
Ronald Benter, Chairman of the GGL, noted that the fight against the black market requires a wide range of instruments if effectiveness is to be achieved.

A particular development that Benter wants to see implemented as soon as possible is a new framework around the blocking of illegal gambling advertisements based on IP addresses.

Benter has sought developments on this particular front for a number of years now. Towards the end of 2023, it was announced that the government is intending to modify Germany’s Criminal Code by deleting Section 284 – previously allowing the GGL to fil..

A near 10-hour sports betting outage in Germany has prompted criticism from the German Sports Betting Association (DSWV), one of the biggest gambling trade bodies in the country.

Local sources revealed that customers across the whole of Germany were unable to place deposits with betting providers for 10 hours straight last Saturday after a failure at a key regulatory system. Licensed firms are concerned this may have driven some customers to the black market.

This was hinted at by Mathias Dahms, DSWV President, who addressed the issue by saying: “This is not just about considerable economic damage.

“If legal sports betting offers cannot be used by customers from Germany on a Bundesliga Saturday, the illegal betting providers, who are very happy to accept new customers and deposits, will benefit first and foremost.

“There is no player protection in the black market. The German tax authorities are also left empty-handed.”

Reason for the outage
Online gambling providers in Germany..

A reported proliferation of gambling on the widely used online computer game Roblox has caught the attention of the Danish Gambling Authority (DGA).

In its latest report into the extent of illegal gambling in Demark and how it is trying to counter it, the Spillemyndigheden stated that it has become concerned with ‘skin betting’ in recent years.

In particular, a form of skin betting on Roblox whereby users gamble using the game’s in-house virtual currency, the Robux, as a deposit is ringing alarm bells at the regulator.

The authority has become aware of a form of Robux called ‘earned Robux’ which can be paid out in US dollars or Danish Krona through the Roblox Developer Exchange Programme.

“This is used by several third-party websites where you can use Robux as deposits and winnings in betting, casino games and lotteries,” the DGA states.

Not the first rodeo for Roblox
Roblox T&Cs state that although gambling content is allowed on the platform, actual gambling – whether for real-wo..

The tax liabilities and fiscal responsibilities of the Brazil Bets regime continue to be scrutinised by the Parliamentary Commission Inquiry (CPI) led by Soraya Thronicke (Podemos-MS) and Senator Dr Hiran Goncalves (PP-RR).

Following a brief pause, the commission, referred to as the ‘CPI of Bets,’ has reinitiated testimonies from key legislative stakeholders to provide feedback on the economic accountabilities of the Bets regime.

Last week, a key testimony was provided by Robinson Barreirinhas, the Special Secretary of Receita Federal, the Federal Revenue Service of Brazil, on the tax framework of Bets.

In charge of Bets tax collection, Receita Federal remains cautious in making projections of taxes accumulated by the new regime, for which the agency has appointed an expert team to monitor market movements.

Yet Barreirinhas has advocated that stricter tax requirements should be placed on Bets licences as part of an individual tax policy aimed at discouraging excessive gambling.

He..

The Football Governance Bill has been approved by the House of Lords – but without some recently proposed amendments that would have effectively banned gambling sponsorships in football.

Peers considered the Bill in its third reading on Monday, carrying three amendments but rejecting amendments suggested by Lord Addington, a Liberal Democrat peer, who stated that “football might be one place we could do without” betting advertising.

One of Addington’s amendments was withdrawn during the report stage of the Bill and another was not moved forward by the House during this stage. During the third reading on Monday, his fourth and final amendment, amendment 53, was rejected by 339 votes to 74.

The Bill’s key measure is the creation of an Independent Football Regulator. Addington’s amendment would have set the regulator a duty to “prevent advertising and sponsorship related to gambling in English football. English football must not promote or engage in advertising or sponsorship related t..

The Republic of Croatia will begin implementing the measures and protections of a new Gambling Law, to be in full effect by early 2026.

The Sabor of Croatia (parliament) has received a mandate to “Combat Addiction to Games of Chance and Betting” by introducing new player protections, tightening rules on gambling venues, eliminating aggressive advertising and increasing gambling taxes.

The mandate was drafted by the HDZ government in coordination with the Croatian Institute of Public Health and professors from the Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation.

The proposed changes carry political significance, as Prime Minister Andrej Plenković has vowed to overhaul Croatia’s gambling laws as part of his third-term mandate, addressing previous failures to tackle gambling addiction — an issue affecting the lives of 40,000 Croats.

Insights from the Institute of Public Health reveal that drastic measures are needed to curb a crisis of gambling disorders impacting Croatia communities. Data sh..

Ireland’s new gambling authority to prioritise compliance and conduct on gambling harms reduction.

The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) will use a ‘full toolkit’ to ensure operators’ compliance with regulations and combat problem gambling, which it believes is much higher than previously expected.

In a double interview with the Irish Examiner, Anne-Marie Caulfield, Chief Executive of the newly formed regulatory agency, stated that rates of harmful gambling in Ireland are ‘10 times higher than had been previously thought’ according to recent data.

This is a worrying figure for the GRAI as it embarks on what it set to be its first year of regulatory activity. The authority was brought into existence by recent legislation, the Gambling Regulation Act 2024, which sought to modernise Ireland’s nearly century old gambling regulation.

Addressing problem gambling has been earmarked as a priority for the regulator, and the responsibilities operators shoulder in meeting this c..

Romania’s Gambling Office has made a key determination on cross-platform self-exclusion rule, opening a path for player compensation…

ONJN, the National Gambling Office of Romania, has determined that licensed operators must uphold self-exclusion as a “single account principle.”

The determination was published on Thursday, 13 March, to close a loophole that allowed self-excluded players to switch platforms and continue to gamble.

According to ONJN, if a customer self-excludes from one account on an operator’s platform, the exclusion must automatically apply to all other accounts held by the customer with that operator — even if the player did not specifically request exclusion from each individual account.

The determination carries consequences for operators that failed to enforce self-exclusion under the single account principle. Customers may now seek compensation for losses incurred on platforms that did not properly apply the self-exclusion measure across all linked accounts.

..

Brazil’s betting market is continuing to adjust to its grey-white transition, as are political overseers and major companies like YouTube which sit on the sidelines of gaming but are nonetheless affected by its developments.

Recent developments have seen marketing placed front-and-centre in politicians’ and tech firms’ agendas. Notably, YouTube will introduce strict new measures from 19 March which will block content related to illegal online gambling websites – though these policies are not isolated to Brazil, they do have a particular relevance to the developing market.

Luckily for the regulated industry, this lines up with its ambitions in the early days of the market. Speaking at the SBC Summit Rio last month, key stakeholders stated that addressing illegal gambling activity is a top priority.

“We need to fight illegal houses, something that really has an impact on our market. Once they are working illegally they hinder the way Brazilian people see our market,” Rafael Borges, CE..