Swedish Gambling Authority issues black market warning to payment processors
Local operators suggest black market could be responsible for 10%+ dip in overall market revenues
The Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) has written to local payment providers warning them against working with unlicensed operators.
The SGA the core purpose of reregulation was to increase consumer protection and it could not achieve that goal without channelisation.
“As part of our supervisory work, we have sent a letter to payment service providers,” the SGA noted “We want to emphasize the importance of not passing on bets and profits to and from gaming companies that, target the Swedish gaming market without a licence.
“Games without a license can have serious consequences for society, such as increased vulnerability to problem gamblers, risk of money laundering, lost tax revenue and unhealthy competition.”
The black market is a potentially growing problem in Sweden following reregulation, with multiple licensed operators suggesting it could be responsible for the 10%+ drop in Swedish market revenues compared to last year.
Kindred CEO Henrik Tjärnström warned after the firm’s Q2 results: “If the market is coming down instead of growing, there could be warning signs that channelisation is negatively impacted which could be dangerous for the system in the long term.”
Henrik Tjärnström, Kindred
In EGR’s recent feature on the Swedish market, one Malta-based exec said the black market was growing because of the stringent regulations placed on operators.
“It’s just not worth it for smaller operators to stay and be compliant in Sweden,” the Malta said. “They will either look for other markets or go to the black market.”
The full letter is available in Swedish here.