Betsson to appeal Dutch fine

Betsson is to appeal the €300,000 fine issued to its Corona subsidiary by the Netherlands Gaming Authority (KSA), the operator has announced.

A company statement said the firm maintained its position that “its operations comply with applicable laws and regulations in the absence of an EU-compliant gambling legislation in the Netherlands”.

Betsson’s VP corporate communications Pia Rosin told EGR the operator would first appeal against the KSA and if unsuccessful take the case to court.

“In theory the process can escalate to higher courts and ultimately to the ECJ – but that is far down the line,” Rosin added.

The firm has argued that it shares the regulator’s ambition to achieve high channelisation in a fully regulated environment in the Netherlands.

The fine was issued last month by the KSA after it was discovered the Betsson brand was offering gaming to customers in the Netherlands without a local licence.

Swedish financial publication, sVD, last week reported that if the fine was not appealed, Betsson could stand to lose the ability to operate the Dutch payment solution iDEAL.

When asked whether the fine could affect Betsson’s ability to apply for a licence in Holland, Rosin said the operator “would not speculate on what it will take to obtain a licence under a legislation we haven’t seen yet”.

In July 2017, Betsson AB filed a lawsuit against strict Dutch regulations stating they were in breach of EU law, however the lawsuit was dismissed by a judge in The Hague in September 2017