Swedish gambling regulator granted new powers to combat illegal gambling
Sweden’s government gives SGA new regulatory powers over payment providers
The Swedish government has confirmed it has granted the Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) additional powers to combat illegal gambling in the country.
These changes were first announced in December 2022 and primarily relate to SGA’s regulatory measures towards payment providers.
Payment providers will now be required to submit certain information to the SGA, such as details on whether their systems are being used to process payments to and from unlicensed operators in Sweden, thereby improving efficiency for blocking payments.
The new measures will come into effect on 1 July 2023.
The changes to the SGA’s powers came as part of Sweden government’s Spring Amendment Budget.
Alongside this announcement, the government said the SGA would receive an increase to its existing grant to help strengthen its activities towards combating illegal gambling in the country.
The government has also called on the regulator to collaborate with Sweden’s financial supervisory authority Finansinspektionen to assist with their efforts, stating the two bodies would provide greater control over financial transactions related to gambling.
Niklas Wykman, Swedish Minister of Financial Markets, said: “Illegal gambling business causes great damage and must be removed from the Swedish gambling market.
“What we are doing now is aimed at blocking payment mediation for such criminal activities and thereby increasing the protection for Swedish consumers.”