Worldwide Regulatory Gambling Industry Updates For June 2020

June saw the resurgence of activities in iGaming and land-based gambling sectors following the lull caused by the global health crisis in May.

The US states as well as Europe were quite active in this regard. We bring you the recap of all that’s happened in the previous 30 days.

US Regulatory Updates

Colorado – Retail sports betting market launched on June 17th, after casinos were reopened in this state. The first sportsbook was launched in Saratoga Casino Black Hawk in deal with Betfred USA.

Georgia – Online sports betting legislation was introduced. HB 903 permits operators to partner with the lottery and offer online betting at a tax rate of 20% of gross win.

Iowa – The Legislature voted to ban the use of credit cards for sports betting which is in line with state regulations that prohibit credit cards for lottery purchases.

Louisiana – Fantasy sports was approved by the Senate and Governor John Bel Edwards signed the legislation to put the question of whether to allow sports betting on the November state-wide referendum. Also, the Senate has approved the legislation to grant the state’s riverboat and ractracks annual $5 million exemption for the next five years to mitigate the pandemic impact.

Maine – The Gambling Control Unit awarded Penn National the sole license to operate advance deposit wagering (ADW) on horseraces. The license allows Penn National to offer wagering on US and international horseraces to anyone located in the state.

Ohio – Sports betting bill SB194 was approved by The House and this authorizes and regulates online and retail sports betting.

Michigan – State legislators have introduced the bill SB969 to expedite the launch of state’s online gaming market. It would allow operators that are already licensed in other states to launch their online casino and poker sites before being granted a full license in Michigan.

Oklahoma – Department of the Interior has approved two new gaming compacts between the state and tribes. The agreements between State Governor Kevin Stitt and the Comanche Nation and Otoe-Missouria Tribe allow the tribes to expand the number of gaming properties.

Rhode Island – The State Lottery launched an interactive sales platform allowing players to play Keno and instant ticket games. The Lottery stated it would expand the game offering to include multi-state draw games in the second half of 2021.

Pennsylvania – Legislators introduced proposals to the Senate to permit video gaming terminals in any facility that holds a liquor license. The bill would specifically prohibit currently unregulated skill-based gambling machines in operation across the state.

European Regulatory Updates

Finland – Regulator Veikkaus has announced it would reduce the number of gaming machines by 8,000 before the end of 2020.

Bulgaria– Bulgarian Parliament has introduced the legislation that would shut down over 600 casinos across the country and leave just 10 integrated resort facilities within 5-star hotels. This should be completed by 2025 and was already met with an outrage by the opposition.

– Online payment processors instructed their banking partners in to block all payments associated to unlicensed online casino gaming. Several German facing online casino sites removed these payment options immediately following the announcement.

Sweden – The Government approved regulations to impose a weekly deposit limit of SEK5,000 and maximum bonus limit of SEK100 on online casino games. The measures were scheduled to take effect on 2 July 2020 until the end of the year.

Ukraine – The Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs has ed the land-based and interactive gambling expansion bill. The taxation regime was set for sports betting (5% of gross win), table games (10%) and gaming machines (12.5%)

The Netherlands – The Government announced that the launch of the countries regulated interactive gambling market could be subject to a further delay of “a few months” due to the COVID19 crisis.

UK – A report was published by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Gambling Related Harm and the 30 recommendations were put forward, including a maximum GBP 2 online slot game stake limit, a ban on all VIP schemes and inducements, a ban on all gambling advertising, an overhaul of UK gambling regulations and review of stakes, deposits and prize limits for online gambling.

Asian Regulatory Updates

Vietnam – The Ministry of Finance proposed legislation to expand the number of football events available for betting. Operators are currently only permitted to offer betting markets on FIFA organised events such as the World Cup but the bill would allow operators to take bets on foreign national and regional leagues such as the English Premiership and UEFA Champions League.

South Korea – The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism permitted Kangwon Land to expand the opening hours of its casino facilities from 18 to 20 hours each day as well as increase the number of gaming tables from 160 to 180.

Latin American Regulatory Updates

Chile – Country’s Ministry of Finance announced proposals to allow the countries casinos to launch online gaming platforms. The proposals were included in plans that would renew the casinos’ landbased operating licenses for 12-months.

Brazil – Paulo Guedes, country’s Economy minister, approved plans to authorize a commercial sports betting market in the country. The bill was submitted to President Jair Bolsonaro for final review.

Colombia – The regulator Coljuegos permitted lottery operators to launch instant ticket games both online and through retail sales outlets. A new video bingo game was also authorised which allowed for online and offline participation.

Mexico – The Ministry of Finance introduced a 16% digital services tax to be levied on all online transactions with internationally based companies, including interactive gambling operators and suppliers.

Source:

“H2 Gambling Capital” , June 2020