Cypriot attorney-general Costas Clerides commanded the local police to launch investigation into OPAP. The order came after the Greek lottery and betting operator refused to show its financial records for a government audit unless a confidentiality agreement is signed. According to the local press, the treasurer of the House finance committee sought the advice from […]

Cypriot attorney-general Costas Clerides commanded the local police to launch investigation into OPAP. The order came after the Greek lottery and betting operator refused to show its financial records for a government audit unless a confidentiality agreement is signed.

According to the local press, the treasurer of the House finance committee sought the advice from the attorney general and was informed not to sign the agreement. OPAP then declined to reveal requested financial information, leaving the attorney-general no other choice but to launch the investigation.

OPAP was operating in Cyprus since 1969. However, last year the Cypriot government decided to revise its agreement with the operator and announced its intentions to regulate OPAP’s betting games via legislation rather than through a bilateral agreement with Greece. Particularly, Cyprus was seeking to update the arrangement in terms of the government’s share of OPAP’s Cyprus revenue.

Last month, a report on OPAP’s current deal with Cyprus was issued by the auditor-general Odysseas Michaelides. It identified a number of financial practices that the company failed to deliver. For instance, OPAP is required to return around 70% of sales to punters however, it was claimed that only 60% is actually returned to them. All in all, Michaelides estimated that Cyprus is losing around 2 million each month.

Currently there is also the legislation under consideration that would imply OPAP to pay Cyprus 24% of its gross profits annually. In exchange, OPAP would maintain its monopoly over lottery games for a fixed period of time.

A deal for creating the first ever casino resort in Cyprus is expected to be closed in the next few weeks. This information was confirmed by Finance Minister Harris Georgiades during the meeting of the parliamentary committee on development plans and public expenditure control. The minister said that the government is dealing with the final […]

A deal for creating the first ever casino resort in Cyprus is expected to be closed in the next few weeks. This information was confirmed by Finance Minister Harris Georgiades during the meeting of the parliamentary committee on development plans and public expenditure control.

The minister said that the government is dealing with the final steps on signing the agreement. According to Georgiades, only a few details are now remaining to be clarified. The matter will be brought to the cabinet for a decision as soon as possible, so the process can move forward and be concluded.

According to the local press, there will be a study on the project. Once completed, it will move to the National Authority for Gaming and Casinos which will then issue the necessary licence.

The winners of the project Melco International Development Limited together with their partner Hard Rock Casino expect to open casino and training facility in Limassol in 2017.

The developer will have to make sure that the casino has at least 100 gambling tables, more than 1000 slot machines and a 500-rooms hotel. Melco-Hard Rock will have a 15 year exclusivity period, the licence will be valid for 30 years.

Daily fantasy sports (DFS) platform provider Oulala.com received the first ever Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) B2B Skill Games Licence. Oulala announced that the obtained licence was a culmination of a target set four years ago to be „regulated separately from other iGaming activities“. Due to “the lack of proper regulation”, Oulala was unable to operate […]

Daily fantasy sports (DFS) platform provider Oulala.com received the first ever Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) B2B Skill Games Licence.

Oulala announced that the obtained licence was a culmination of a target set four years ago to be „regulated separately from other iGaming activities“. Due to “the lack of proper regulation”, Oulala was unable to operate legally in the UK, therefore it had to acquire a remote gambling licence.

“The authorities in Malta were the first in foretelling the impact of DFS’s potential in Europe, and the MGA was in fact the first regulator to acknowledge our needs,” Benjamin Carlotti, Oulala co-founder and managing director emphasised that the approval represents an important corporate milestone.

“We are incredibly proud to be participating in the development of a licensing framework that regulates skill-based games, fantasy sports included. This was a highly significant step in the right direction, and our hope is that other European regulators will soon follow suit,” added Carlotti.

The MGA spent over two years examining and working on a new licence category for controlled skill games, which specifically regulates DFS and defines it as a game of skill as opposed to gambling.

A controlled skill game licence is valid for five years and can be used for either B2C and/or B2B purposes. It is a subject to a number of requirements, including segregation of operational and players’ funds.

MGA executive chairman Joseph Cuschieri said that MGA is pleased to be issuing a B2B licence for fantasy sports to Oulala under the new skill games regulations.

“Malta’s regulatory framework ensures a high standard of player protection and game fairness whilst allowing operators space for growth and innovation. It is for this reason that operators such as Oulala have chosen Malta as their primary place of establishment” commented Joseph Cuschieri.

In an interview with CalvinAyre.com, Corinne Valetta of the Malta Gaming Authority discusses Malta being at par with other gambling jurisdictions, EU directives and cryptocurrency in the gambling industry. It’s a common example today that government turns to the gambling industry in order to increase the budget for social services. For example, Philippines. According to […]

In an interview with CalvinAyre.com, Corinne Valetta of the Malta Gaming Authority discusses Malta being at par with other gambling jurisdictions, EU directives and cryptocurrency in the gambling industry.

It’s a common example today that government turns to the gambling industry in order to increase the budget for social services. For example, Philippines. According to the State regulator Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, a part of its gross gaming revenue will be used for government’s health programmes. Meanwhile, in the UK, the funds raised via the national lottery and tax were used for Olympic and Paralympic sports.

Corinne Valetta of the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) says that implementing operator-friendly policies is the key in order to support the growth of the gambling industry in any jurisdiction.

She commented so as Malta is currently undergoing a process of streamlining many regulations. According to Valetta, MGA is aware of the increasing compliance demands that operators are facing because of the state-by-state jurisdiction.

“We are aware that we have created a compliance nightmare for operators so we are doing quite a bit to tone this down, streamline it to make it more operator friendly. There are a number of initiatives going on throughout the European Union – if I could just mention a few – I think we have gained significant headway within the expert group on gambling services, which we basically discussed a number of issues which affects the industry,” Valetta said in an interview with CalvinAyre.com.

“We try, as much as possible, at par with other jurisdictions, to create a level playing field. It has been so difficult, you know, to comply with other jurisdictions, we are aware of that. We are trying to achieve the right balance,” Valetta added.

The second important issue pointed by Valetta is bracing for the possible effect of the money laundering directive issued by the European Union. According to Valetta, they are now working on the actual implementation of the directive.

“We have a nationwide national risk assessment, which looked at the very sectors – including the gaming industry but now we’ve also gone into the gaming industry per se, and it is open to products, services, scenarios, services controls and we conducted a risk analysis of each and every product, each of every scenario,” Valetta added.

Regarding the cryptocurrency, Valetta said that virtual currencies should be tackled not only by the MGA but also by other concerned Malta agencies.

“That has been something that we’ve been working for a long time. And we need obviously the financial services center on-board, they are the agency directly dealing with the virtual currencies, we need to have the financial intelligence analysis unit on-board especially considering that virtual currency are now included in the directive. We need to have all the stakeholders on-board and we’ve finally managed to get everybody around the table and we kick-started a project in order to announce more on this position,” Valetta commented.

The Swiss parliament pushed through a vote that required internet service providers (ISPs) to block access to illegal gambling websites. International online gambling operators will be blocked from offering their serviced to nationals within the country. Previously, the upper house accepted the proposal and now the lower section of the House of Representatives gave the […]

The Swiss parliament pushed through a vote that required internet service providers (ISPs) to block access to illegal gambling websites. International online gambling operators will be blocked from offering their serviced to nationals within the country.

Previously, the upper house accepted the proposal and now the lower section of the House of Representatives gave the green light to proceed further.

The question of domain-blocking did not pass without controversy reactions. The Greens and Swiss People’s Party opposed the plans. Franz Grütter, a member of the party, was speaking out against the proposal, saying that the move is “what dictatorships do”.

“Blocking isn’t in step with the liberal, democratic way of thinking” Grütter added.

Initially, the ones behind the website-blocking plan were the casino operators, who have complained about their declining revenues due to the competition from international gambling operators. ISPs were clear they understood who is the beneficiary of the blocking and offered for Swiss casinos to cover the costs that ISPs will incur while proceeding with domain blocking.

Further, ISPs were arguing that such decision in other countries did not stop local gamblers from exploring their international options. Thierry Burkart from the centre-right Radical Party claimed otherwise, saying that “blocking websites works – experience abroad demonstrates that.”

The second important decision taken was the lower house confirming that only casinos based in Switzerland will be eligible for a new Swiss online gambling license.

However, even though many important parts of the matter are already decided, legislators are still not sure whether or not to tax gambling winnings, and if so, by how much. The debate on that is scheduled to continue on March 15.

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) presented its latest report which revealed more information about the levels of gambling participation, attitudes and behaviour of British customers. The survey shows that 48% of respondents aged 16 years or older have placed bets over the past four weeks at the time of the research. This marked a 3% […]

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) presented its latest report which revealed more information about the levels of gambling participation, attitudes and behaviour of British customers.

The survey shows that 48% of respondents aged 16 years or older have placed bets over the past four weeks at the time of the research. This marked a 3% increase compared to the number of people who gambled in 2015. However, this figure dropped to 33% if those that had only played the National Lottery were excluded.

The survey proved that 17% of gamblers put their wagers online, with 97% of them gambling at home.

When it comes to the use of mobile phones or tablet devices in the gambling process, there was a 10% increase in the usage in comparison to 2015, to reach 43% in 2016.

The Programme Director James Green commented on the report saying: “This report paints an important picture of how consumers in Britain choose to gamble – identifying emerging trends and potential risks to the public”.

“We are also now able to provide a more detailed snapshot of online behaviours, which featured for the first time last year. Effective protections come from strong evidence. Our research puts us in a powerful position to better understand the needs of gambling consumers” said James Green.

When it came to marketing, the UKGC found that online gamblers are more likely to make a wager based on advertising (46%) than on social media posts (21%).

The report showed that 0.7% of those that gambled in the past 1 year identified as problem gamblers. This number increased from 0.5% which was reported in 2016.

Now that Czech National Court ruled that the decision to block illegal gambling sites in the country is constitutional, the authorities will move forward with igaming block. This month we saw the launch of PokerStars.cz, the first licensed online poker and casino operator since the new Gambling Act was introduced in Czech Republic on January […]

Now that Czech National Court ruled that the decision to block illegal gambling sites in the country is constitutional, the authorities will move forward with igaming block.

This month we saw the launch of PokerStars.cz, the first licensed online poker and casino operator since the new Gambling Act was introduced in Czech Republic on January 1, 2017.

Even though many international operators left the market months before the deadline, some have chosen to carry on their work as per usual. The government then announced that those not following the decision will be targeted and requested internet service providers (ISPs) to block all domains of sites that are acting against the law.

However, some Czech politicians expressed their concern, questioning whether the domain-blocking plan is constitutional. There were also claims that it is unfair to request ISPs to bear the costs of handling the blocking.

The Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic decided that such arguments do not affect the decision and the blocking is in fact constitutional. The court said that it does not stifle freedom of speech and ISPs need to be a part of the process since they are accessible and have the tools necessary to accomplish the task. According to the court, blocking is “likely the only effective (although not perfect) solution” to the problem of unauthorised gambling service.

The regional press revealed that at least 25 gaming platforms are operating without the official approval and are acting against the current law. Responsible officials will now be able to block any domain that is not licensed.

Russian authorities have approved new penalties for internet service providers (ISPs) who fail to restrict access to unauthorised online gambling domains. A few weeks ago Russia’s Duma adopted Bill 1102471-6, which amended the Russian Federation Code of Administrative Offences. The amendments increased fines for ISPs who fail to block websites that have been flagged by […]

Russian authorities have approved new penalties for internet service providers (ISPs) who fail to restrict access to unauthorised online gambling domains.

A few weeks ago Russia’s Duma adopted Bill 1102471-6, which amended the Russian Federation Code of Administrative Offences. The amendments increased fines for ISPs who fail to block websites that have been flagged by the Russian telecommunications watchdog Roskomnadzor. The bill was signed into law by Vladimir Putin on Wednesday.

The new fines are twice higher than the size of the original penalties. Public officials face fines of RUB 5000 (US $86), while companies will have to pay up to RUB 100,000 ($1,722).

Roskomnadzor identified almost 87,000 offending domains in 2016, which was a 75% increase compared with 2015’s total. Although many of these sites offered porn or undesirable political opinions, 15,900 of the banned domains were gambling sites. This year agency got even busier, banning 1,400 gambling domains in the period of February 15-21.

However, despite active attempts by Roskomnadzor to ban gambling sites, ISPs were slow to take action. A recent study by RBC.ru revealed that 65% of the flagged domains remain accessible to Russians.

Russia has been very aggressive towards online gambling market recently. A few online sports betting licences were issued to domestic operators. In the meantime online casino, poker and other gambling products were prohibited. Last week, Russian authorities issued a legislation that prohibits local financial institutions from processing transactions on behalf of unauthorised online operators.

The government of the United Arab Emirates is planning to form a clear regulatory framework on the usability of Bitcoin and digital currency exchanges in the near future. On January 1, 2017, the Central Bank of UAE published a document “Regulatory Framework for Stored Values and Electronic Payment System,” that contained its vision of leading […]

The government of the United Arab Emirates is planning to form a clear regulatory framework on the usability of Bitcoin and digital currency exchanges in the near future.

On January 1, 2017, the Central Bank of UAE published a document “Regulatory Framework for Stored Values and Electronic Payment System,” that contained its vision of leading market adoption of digital payments and fintech technologies within the UAE.

A part of the document explicitly prohibited the use of virtual currencies, outlawing virtual currency transactions and trading. The document caused controversial discussions within the industry and raised a question whether the bill considers bitcoin and other digital currencies currently in existence.

Mubarak Rashed Khamis Al Mansouri, the governor of the Central Bank of the UAE, confirmed that the document doesn’t consider digital currencies like Bitcoin. Al Mansouri added that the central bank is considering legalising Bitcoin and “developing necessary regulatory frameworks for businesses and exchanges to comply with”.

The Central Bank of UAE may follow the example of the Bank of Canada, which recently announced that digital currencies like Bitcoin need government intervention for it to grow further.

In the report “Canadian Bank Notes and Dominion Notes: Lessons for Digital Currencies”, the researchers stated:

“We conclude that well designed and managed private digital currencies could circulate widely but only with appropriate government regulation to ensure their safety, soundness, and uniformity”.

Betting firms in Kenya have warned the local government that proposed law to regulate gambling in the country will do more harm than good to the industry. They believe that the law proposed by MP Jakoyo Midiwo will cause stagnation in the growing business of gambling and will prevent Kenya from benefiting of any potential […]

Betting firms in Kenya have warned the local government that proposed law to regulate gambling in the country will do more harm than good to the industry. They believe that the law proposed by MP Jakoyo Midiwo will cause stagnation in the growing business of gambling and will prevent Kenya from benefiting of any potential tax revenues.

The Association of Gaming Operators of Kenya (AGOK) called the bill misguided and asked to defer it until further consultations are conducted and a compromise of two sides is reached.

“The Bill requires significant amendments. It would not be the same Bill as it was at the first reading,” said AGOK chairman Ronald Karauri. “There appears to be a concerted targeting of the industry through measures that are designed to cripple the industry,” he added.

The bill proposes to double the betting tax (from 7.5% to 15%), to increase the lottery tax from 5% to 20% and the gaming tax from 12% to 20%. Karauri believes that such changes are breaching the Constitution and will create unsustainable business conditions.

Further, AGOK chairman questions Midiwo’s research on problem gambling and states that “it has never been scientifically proven that betting is addictive”.
“It is my personal belief that if there was a problem with betting, it would not grow,” commented Karauri.

A National Assembly committee is willing to negotiate and seek for a solution that is more acceptable for betting firms, but the bill can no longer be deferred.
“There is some urgency in the matter,” commented David Were, the committee chairman.

Recently NetShop has announced the company’s decision to accept Bitcoin payments for all the hosting services, domains and SSL certificates. We are glad to present an exclusive interview with Lorenzo Sordini, CFO of NetShop Internet Services Ltd, examining NetShop’s approach towards the cryptocurrency, engagement of Bitcoin in the hosting industry and the benefits of this […]

Recently NetShop has announced the company’s decision to accept Bitcoin payments for all the hosting services, domains and SSL certificates. We are glad to present an exclusive interview with Lorenzo Sordini, CFO of NetShop Internet Services Ltd, examining NetShop’s approach towards the cryptocurrency, engagement of Bitcoin in the hosting industry and the benefits of this change that will be brought to the customers of NetShop.

Q: NetShop has decided to accept Bitcoin payments for the services provided. Why is that?

Some would think this decision is part of a new marketing approach – it’s not. The hosting industry is very dynamic and sometimes even aggressive, especially for providers like NetShop that host iGaming companies and financial institutions. Bitcoin payments help our company to enjoy a higher level of protection and prevent fraudulent transactions which are unwelcome by our BackOffice and Billing departments. Moreover, getting paid in Bitcoin is much faster than any other payment methods. There is no risk of having client funds locked in the intermediary institutions. This is a big advantage for both our company and the clients since we can have the order activated and services provided almost instantly.

Q: How will your clients benefit from that?

Bitcoin, although a new form of payment, is very secure. Our main concern, as a hosting provider, is to keep our clients’ data safe and ensure that any transactions conducted within the myNetShop portal are 100% secure for both our company and the end-customer. I completely agree with Stuart Eichert (Silicon Valley engineer) who emphasized one big benefit of Bitcoin. He said that “customers using Bitcoin leave no data behind that can be used to steal their identity or print fake credit cards”. Accepting Bitcoin is also a huge advantage for a lot of our existing customers in Asia who have trouble sending money to European companies. Now they will have zero transaction fees and be sure that the payments are instantly received by the merchant.

Q: How would you respond to seemingly contradictory opinions that Bitcoin is often associated with fraud due to its anonymity. How will you ensure that your payment system is safe and secure?

Well, as I mentioned earlier, fraud prevention and security are the two reasons that made us consider accepting Bitcoin payments. Bitcoin currency allows transactions to be conducted without having customers to divulge personally identifiable information. However, we operate through a U.S. Bitcoin Exchange (BitPay.com) which requires personal information in order to establish their clients’ Bitcoin wallets. Working in accordance with international regulations is vital to us. We accept no other attitude towards our operations than being 100% transparent and trusted.

Q: How do you see the future of Bitcoin in the hosting industry?

As said, the hosting industry is very dynamic and as the technology progresses, hosting providers should be able to cope, and more importantly, be ahead of the fast developments in technology. I believe that, at least during 2017, customers will be the ones who push their hosting companies to include Bitcoin as an accepted payment method. Going forward, in the next two years, we will see a massive progress towards the adoption of Bitcoin payments. I believe it will peak in 2020 when providing Bitcoin wallets will be a common practice.

Q: There are still not that many hosting companies accepting Bitcoin. Is taking a proactive approach towards industry needs a core value to NetShop? How important is being innovative and agile to you?

There are about 30 big hosting companies accepting Bitcoin at this point. Compared to the number of the legitimate hosting providers it’s a very small portion. The industry is still at the early stage of seeing Bitcoin payments as a default payment method and I’m glad that NetShop steps up as an innovator once again. We are driving the change and we are one of the front runners. That’s something that started this company and we have no other plans than to continue such approach. We listen to the industry needs, we care about our clients and we are always one step ahead to make sure that their business is handled as fast, comfortable and safe as possible. Our goal is to facilitate tools and services to our customers without any delays or constraints. NetShop is brave, proactive and flexible. And these qualities always worked for the best for us and for our customers. Don’t forget that NetShop ISP is the very first provider in Cyprus to offer Linux cPanel hosting, Cloud services and Dedicated Servers at prices equivalent to Europe’s hosting giants. We have always been in front.

Russia is introducing a legislation that would oblige banks and payment processors to block transactions with international online gambling companies. The Ministry of Finance prepared a new bill that aims to stop the flow of funds between Russian punters and international online gambling operators. The changes are set to be discussed by the government on […]

Russia is introducing a legislation that would oblige banks and payment processors to block transactions with international online gambling companies.

The Ministry of Finance prepared a new bill that aims to stop the flow of funds between Russian punters and international online gambling operators. The changes are set to be discussed by the government on Thursday.

If the bill gets approved, the Federal Task Service will create a blacklist of Russian and international companies and individuals that are involved in illegal online gaming activities. The list will be then sent to financial institutions in the country, which will be responsible for blocking future transactions.

The bill was originally proposed in 2015, but encountered heavy resistance from certain government ministries, as well as some major Russian financial institutions.

Russia agreed to have a limited number of domestic sports betting operators launching online betting sites but internationally licensed companies remain unwelcome. Further, all sites licensed in Russia are obliged to process payments through centralised hubs known as TSUPIS. In this way the government can easily monitor online gambling activity.

It is estimated that Russian players spend approximately $3 billion every year on foreign online gaming websites.