iGaming Daily

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Enforcement is replacing expansion as a key word in iGaming. The Conspell Authority has handed down some of its largest ever fines to offshore operators accused of targeting Dutch players while also laying out an ambitious supervisory agenda for the year ahead. From the black market activity and influencer marketing to duty of care and anti-money laundering, the message from The Hague is clear. Scrooginy is only going to intensify. So what does this mean for licensed operators, market channelization, and the broader regulatory direction in Europe? Welcome to iGaming Daily where we will break down what's happening in the Dutch market and why the implications may stretch far beyond it. As always, this episode is brought to you by OptiMove, the creator of positionless marketing and the number one player engagement solution for iGaming and sports betting operators. I'm Fernando Nott, Media Manager for SVC and your host for today. And I am once again joined by the dynamic duo, Ted Armclay, editor for SVC News and Joe Streeter, editor for iGamingExpert. Guys, how are you today? Ted, all good? Yeah, yeah, pretty good. Thank you, Fer. How are you? I'm good, I'm good. Thanks. And Joe, how are you? What about you? Yeah, I'm great. Thanks, Fer. It's been hectic week in the UK. Obviously we've had Cheltenham. So yeah, all the dust kind of settling. We've got Gold Cup Day Friday and yeah, we're... We're, yeah, well, been a busy week, but great to be on the pod. Yeah, absolutely. An absolute classic, Childhood Hum. But today what brings us to iGaming Daily is actually Dutch news is news coming out of the Netherlands because this week the KSA, which is the gaming regulator for the country issued a record fine for Novatec as well as another fine for another company. But why don't we start by breaking down the story and explaining what this fine is about. I think I can jump in here. The Netherlands, like a lot of other European markets at the moment, has been fighting quite a long running battle against the black market, against illegal gambling. The Netherlands is probably one of the more notable examples. The fight there certainly seems to be a lot more pronounced than in some other markets. Obviously, other big contenders would be like Germany, be a good example. Sweden has obviously had its... It's fair share of frustrations with the offshore markets as well. But the Netherlands has got, the situations have become particularly frustrating for the regulator and for the regulated industry there over the past couple of years. A lot of the, if you talk to a lot of people in the regulated industry, they'd pin this on the higher taxation rates that came into effect last year and with a new one that just came into effect in January this year, which have led to operators taking mitigation measures, self. preservation measures and so on to protect their margins that have put the burden onto the customer. And as a result of that, customers then go out there to look for better offers and come across the ones that are unlicensed. Something else is also marketing. People from the regulated industry and the Netherlands would often point to that as being some of the marketing restrictions there as cutting back their ability to promote themselves. And as a result of that, they lose exposure to the black market. So channelization rates have been uh struggling a bit more in the past couple of years. And em this fine that was announced today, I think this is the largest ever fine issued in the Netherlands, I believe, of 24 million euros. It's just continuation of that. I think it's a sign that the KSA, the Dutch regulator, is yet treating this as one of its top priorities in 2026. Yeah, I can follow that up. basically, you know, obviously we're talking about this being a Dutch story, but I think this is a story of, of wider Europe as well and a wider global markets. Ted mentioned the Swedish market. Well, well, they followed up. I'm not going to try and pronounce the name of the Swedish regulator, but the Swedish regulator followed up and also took action against Novatech for allegedly offering ah unlicensed games in the Swedish market without a Swedish license. So yeah, I think this speaks to a um wider uh kind of news story, a wider kind of news narrative. As marketing restrictions tighten on the regulated market, there is increased action attempted to be taken. will go into how fruitful that is um on unlicensed operators. And just on the size of the fine as well, Ted mentioned the, think the largest fine or sanction given to an unlicensed offshore operator. Let me get this up just to be 100 % on it. think the fine relates to, and these are the quotes from the KSA, the fine relates to the size of uh the operator. yeah, this really shows, the size of the fine shows just how much exposure that they had in the market and how much presence they had in the market. Of course, hearing about record breaking flying uh sure does make a headline. It makes a good headline and people will be like, okay, so the KSA is doing something to protect the market, is doing something to fight the unlicensed operators, but how realistic is it actually to uh find an offshore operator? How can the KSA collect that fine? Yeah, well, you know, the chances I think, and I think they almost know are there, they're under no illusions that the chances of them, uh, you know, recouping this sanction from the offshore operator are very small. But what we've seen since then is we've seen, uh, Nova tech, um, it seems like voluntarily, uh, you know, we've brought its license. Uh, it was Curacao license, CGA license. Uh, it's no longer on the register for Curacao operators. uh So yeah, you have to believe that this alongside the action of the Swedish authority has put pressure on them to kind of take away that license. That's not the impact that would have been, you know, they would have wanted to recoup the fine, I'm sure, but at least this is having some impact. um yeah, it raises further questions about, you know, will they be able to go somewhere else and get a license? But yeah, it's had some impact that has to be taken into account. think Joe's made a good point there, these fines, even if you can't, even if the regulator might not necessarily be able to collect all of it because obviously with the company being offshore and unlicensed, doesn't have a registration in the devlues. doesn't have a base there where you can take legal action against it to claim that fine back. Even though that might not be entirely a hundred percent. These things do function, these enforcement actions do function as kind of like a warning shot, like Joe's mentioned there, which could prompt a company to go right with, you know, that was quite a big high profile case. We've just got ourselves involved in, let's roll things back a little bit. It's also a good way of, guess, raising a bit of a red flag for other regulators internationally. Maybe that's what happened. I mean, I'd imagine the Swedish regulators have been investigating this company for some time, but you know, it- It is interesting that these have occurred so close together. So yeah, there could be an element of it draws attention to it and other national regulators can then investigate a company's activity in their own jurisdictions. You know, we've seen regulators across Europe talking a lot about how they'd like to collaborate more with each other, have more cross border workings and objectives and so on. So that could fall into this. In terms of collecting the fine though, I think there are some avenues that regulators will have even when it's a company that isn't licensed there. At the end of the day, these firms, even if they're not licensed in the country, they still must have payments, like payments partners or so on, intermediaries, maybe advertising partners. If you follow the paper trail as it were, if you join the dots between there, you'll probably be able to find where to chase the money, I guess. Yeah, it's a good point. And I just wanted to kind of come back in if it's okay on the size of the fine. You know, is it something that's quite important, but just to echo that point from the KSA chairman, you know, they said they determined the amount of the fine based on the estimated turnover. And we have to underline that it is estimated because there's real struggles to really pinpoint just how much turnover the black market makes. But yeah, they estimate that they determine the amount of the fine based on the estimated turnover that the illegal provider has achieved from players in the Netherlands. In doing so, they are limited by law that says the fine may be a maximum of 10 % in global turnover. According to the KSA, Novatec earned hundreds of millions from its illegal turnover and did so mainly from Dutch players. A fine of 24 million sounds impressive, but the maximum of 10 % the fine would have come to more than 100 million, an amount that would have been better suited to this violation. yeah, quite the statement from the KSA on the size of the fine and why they went so big on this one. And Ted was making a strong point there about following the partner track, To maybe cut or clamp down on the illegal operations. Of course, in this case, particularly their uh influencers involved promoting uh unlicensed operator. do you guys think that that could be the next step for regulation uh influencer marketing or also new regulation passed to greater liability place not only on the operators but also on those partners, not only the influencers but also affiliates, marketing intermediaries, et cetera. This is something we have spoken about on the podcast recently, isn't it? think about influencers and their role in promoting illegal sites, unlicensed sites, offshore sites, and so on. It's something that we do see across a lot of different European countries. the Netherlands, the legal situation in the Netherlands around influencer advertising and lots of different types of advertising and marketing in general all comes back to that principle of the role model ban from 2024, I think that came into effect where you're not allowed to feature people in your marketing who are considered to have a strong appeal to younger people, to be role models to younger people. I think a lot of that focused initially around footballers, but obviously in today's age, influencers are quite prominent personalities. The name suggests it, guess. It's in the name, isn't it? It does what it on the tin. In terms of that, the Netherlands has quite strict laws around it. We're seeing other countries start to look at influencers a bit more as well. There's been a conversation in the UK lately. Even outside of Europe, think it's been quite a big talking point in Brazil during the transition from the grey market to the regulated market was launched last year. I remember there being some conversations about how the lingering grey market, the lingering black market is still existing in Brazil. One of the main ways it maintained its presence was via influencer marketing. So it is becoming, like you say, for a very, very big talking point in international iGaming regulation at the moment and in terms of the fight against the black market. think partly as well, you've got the problem that a lot of these influencers might not really be aware of who they're actually partnering with in some cases, especially when they've reached out to you by a third party, by a company that's been hired by said buy market firms to find influencer partners for them. So there could be an element of education necessary there as well. I think this is a massive point and Ted raises some great points, but I think this is a real massive point. I think this is how operators, whether it's through exposure, whether it's through direct advertising of games, I think this is how they engage a younger audience and how they just engage a wider audience as well. Um, I just, just recently kind of there's, there's a Netflix documentary with Louis Theroux all about the, the Manosphere. Uh, but it's largely about, uh, male influencers that kind of, um yeah, they, they influence a massive young audience and they really connect with their audience as well. They do a great job of kind of engaging this audience and influencing them, I guess. Um, but one of the first things that really stood out to me on, this show. that's all about streaming, clip farming. They always put, and he pointed it out as well, they always put em a gambling logo on those streams. And largely it's an offshore gambling logo. So yeah, I think this is really a key point. If you can kind of find a way, it's a tough task, but if you can find a way of halting offshore operators engaging with audiences, through streamers and I think you probably have to do it through social media. I think you have to cut them off at source. um Then I think you do go some of the way to cutting out the problem. Yeah, you know, in the UK we saw the proposal of a ban on front of shirt sponsorships for, or sponsoring football clubs for offshore operators. This will go possibly some of the way, but the real problem is through influencers. through social media engagement, I think. guess we'll have to hashtag wait and see if regulators like the KSA decide to go after influencers, after affiliates and marketing intermediaries. But I guess I can't with that word today. But the KSA for sure has set a clear path and a clear strategy, that is branding offshore actors as the public enemy number one. But we will discuss that right after this very, very brief. And we're back with more iGaming Daily to continue discussing the aftermath of the fines set by the KSA on Novatech, a record-breaking fine, the starting point of a much larger debate on offshore operators, which the regulator, the KSA, has branded as the public enemy number one. Does that signal a more aggressive enforcement posture in 2026, do you reckon, guys? Yeah, I think so. I think, you know, there's still challenges with how you kind of tackle um offshore operators. But I think it signals a wider, um it signals a deeper effort from not just the KSA, but from global operators. And I think, you know, one of the things that's worth mentioning in a completely different market, in a completely different region, just this morning, we saw Padcore in the Philippines note that they are going to Do take more action to tackle influencer marketing when it comes to gambling. So yeah, I think this is part of, we mentioned the UK taking extra action as well. I think this is increased from the KSA, but I think that's embodies kind of wider action that's an increased focus across Europe. um Yeah. On the black market. And I think you would understand that as well, you know, go to any event and you will hear the kind of. fears around the black market and that this is really being taken seriously now. Yeah, just second what Joe says. think it's indicative of a wider trend of regulators wanting to really clamp down on the black market, like what Joe mentioned in the UK. Relating to what we've spoke about influences on social media earlier, the UK government commission has been quite openly stating lately they want to see social media platforms like Meta do more around preventing the distribution of unlicensed gambling promotions and content on there that would obviously touch on influencers. And yeah, just across Europe and even further afield to Latin America, North America and so on. We're seeing regulators becoming, wanting to take on the black market more and more, I think, and really step up the fight against it. So yeah, I think what the KSA is doing in the Netherlands is just indicative of a wider trend like Joe said. I think they have to as well, right? I think that's a consequence of making it harder for the regulated market. The UK, the very obvious example, as you make marketing conditions and you make taxation rates harder for the regulated market, an unintended consequence of that is the door opens a little bit further for the black market. So steps have to be taken to close that door. I think that's probably the same in the Netherlands. And also Brazil as well, know, that tax rate has steadily increased as the regulated market has opened up. And as that happens, that door slightly opens further for the black market and steps have to be taken to slam it shut or else you see, like we've seen across Europe, we've seen some really uh disastrous outcomes with the surging black market. And the KC actually has five priorities, very strong priorities set for the coming year, for 2026 and the near future, I guess, which are black market activity, vulnerable groups, duty of care, advertising, and AML, anti-money laundering. So which of those do you think that will have the biggest impact on licensed operators? Because we've been talking about offshore uh operations and of course, going after them. is only make sense for player protection and developing a healthy market. So what is the impact on licensed operators if you go after those things? It's hard to pick which one I think would have the biggest impact. Cause all of them will have an effect in some way on, you know, just operators practices or even, you know, their bottom lines, margins and so on. I think obviously clamping down on the black market in the Netherlands would be a very positive move for the regulated industry because the regulated industry is finding itself in a very bitter, a competitive battle with the black market competing for em market share, competing for consumer and customer acquisition and so on. em So obviously cutting back that black market offering and in doing so that would open the door more for the regulated markets who obviously acquire acquire these customers who've been going to the unlicensed platforms, aren't paying fees, aren't paying the taxes, are subject to the player protection requirements and so on. So yeah, so that'll be a positive move. Obviously the thing is, is it could be a double edged sword where if we're going, if we're clamping down on the black market while simultaneously making advertising more difficult for the regulated market. Obviously the regulated market is then struggling to really promote itself out there against the black market as a lot of stakeholders would tell you and would say our events and things like that. I that was quite a big talking point at the Lisbon summit last year on some of the conversations around the Netherlands. So it's really just about finding that balance as to, went between sort of over regulation and the need to combat the illegal market. Yeah. I'll build on what Ted said there and I'll pick out the AML part of those five priorities. Obviously AML is crucial. It's vital that safeguards are taken and it's right. It's pivotal to a safer gambling ecosystem, but you've got to be careful. You've got to find balance like Ted said. If you provide too much friction with creatures of comfort, with creatures of convenience, When I'm watching the game tonight, I don't know who's playing tonight. I Swansea Wrexham in the EFL. You know, if you want the bet, you want the live action, you want to be able to deposit quickly. um You need to not provide too much friction to kind of innocent players um that are, you know, just looking to place a bet. And that's going to take on um heightened importance during the World Cup as well. So yeah, the AML side of it, I think if you kind of put in too many checks. You create too much friction. You're going to drive players away from the regulated market. So as Ted said, there's a really important balance to be found there. Yeah. And it's very, it's very important that you mentioned the World Cup with all the innocent players coming in to make their bets on the World Cup. So why will black market enforcement be so vital as we heading to the greatest tournament in sports? The greatest tournament in sports for I'm going to take issue with that straight away because you've obviously not been engaged in the battle for league two promotion this season. It's been enthralling. uh Yeah, I think it's crucial, right? Because I think, know, firstly, eh people that normally watch sports for the world cup, you get a new audience. get people that aren't necessarily always watching sports um aren't necessarily familiar with. regulated operators and, uh, regulated marketing and things like that. They might not even recognize black market operators. That's a real danger. Um, and the other thing, especially around this world cup in Europe, you're going to have a lot of second screen action. You're going to have players watching the tournament and it's going to be midnight. It's going to be, you know, whatever ungodly hours these, the tournament kicks off here. We're all prepared for it. We're already adjusting our sleeping clocks, but you're going to have players watching. you know, when I say players, mean, viewers watching the football match. And then they're also going to be watching streamers on their second stream. They're going to be watching, looking at data content on their other stream. uh And we've spoken about it, right? Influencers are a big source of offshore marketing. So yeah, it's really important that that is clamped down. these companies aren't kind of penetrating audiences during game time when they're most engaged in action. And yeah, most, most looking to, to place a harmless bet on over 2.5 in the England game or whatever. uh I'd just say as well, let's just talk about the greatest tournament on earth. I'd also like to give a shout out to the championship where Millwall are one point away from being in the automatic relegation zone. It's pretty exciting uh for Millwall fans out there. Pretty crazy development in English football and then up in Scotland you've Your heart might make history up there as well. it's one of the first times in a while that we're paying attention to the Scottish leagues. anyway, the World Cup, this was something that was spoken about on obviously our recent digital day. The series of webinars we had around the World Cup and betting around the World Cup put on by our very talented colleague, Yeah, looking at that. One of the panel that I moderated on that, one of the topics was about the customer acquisition. And there was quite a strong sentiment among the operators there that the competition against the black market this year is going to be just as fierce as the competition against each other to get your name out there and to acquire new operators. So I think the World Cup will really shine a light on this long running struggle between the two sides of the coin. Yeah, I know we're wrapping up for right, but I listened to that panel, Ted. I wrote an article on it um on iGaming expert this week. I think a direct quote was the biggest threat to operators, the biggest competition to operators heading into this world cup is the black market. So yeah, definitely very pertinent point about from the webinar series uh earlier in the week. Make sure you are subscribed to iGaming Expert to read that and all about the iGaming world, also SBC News to read whatsapp with the KSA, what new steps it will take after this record breaking fine and make sure you are subscribed to all SBC media newsletters to keep up to date with everything going on in the iGaming and sports betting industries all around the world. Also follow iGaming Daily on your preferred podcasting platform and all social media. But that has been all for today's episode, thank you very much guys, Joe Streeter, Ted and Clay, thank you very much to Ney and McDonald for producing this episode, we will continue following what happens with the KSA and the illegal market in the Netherlands, but that's been all for today, I'm Fernando Nott, and to our listeners out there, we'll see you in the next one, goodbye.