The Dutch payments revolution

For a long time, payment methods were the source of pain for players wanting to take part in online gambling in the Netherlands.

Any operator that offered the go-to payment choice– the Dutch-owned e-commerce system iDEAL – risked receiving a heavy fine imposed by regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) prior to market legalisation last year.

Shorn of their favoured option, Dutch players typically used Skrill, Neteller and various credit card methods prior to the Remote Gambling Act becoming active, which allowed online casinos to operate legally under licence as of 1 October.

However, things changed overnight. In the regulated casino market, iDEAL made up for lost time by immediately becoming the default payment solution for Dutch players. Skrill and Neteller have since officially moved out of the Dutch market altogether, although not every other provider has followed suit.

The continued success of iDEAL is a key factor within the KSA’s goal of achieving a lofty 80% channelisation rate by 2024. By steering players away from the sector’s formerly popular payment methods and into the hands of iDEAL – which is not available overseas – operator adoption of this payment method means it becomes synonymous with licensed online gaming. Put simply, because iDEAL is now legal, the player experience of depositing and withdrawing funds is, for the majority, superior at a regulated casino, compared to an unlicensed operator.

New powers

New gambling laws have also helped beef up the KSA’s powers in dealing with rogue payment providers. Before 1 October, payment providers were not viewed legally as promoters of online betting, but the regulator is now able to issue a range of sanctions for non-compliance. From official warnings to major fines, which started being issued as of 1 November, there is a clear incentive for payment providers to stay within the legal realm.

While complying with current laws and regulations will help to deter Dutch players from using illegal online casinos, there are other measures that payment providers can take to help achieve this objective. The most apparent is to stop offering services to Dutch players in illegal casinos altogether.

There are some major names that remain in the mix in offering their payment services on unlicensed casino sites. Indeed, iDEAL is still offered to Dutch players through third-party payment providers, who use a loophole allowing players to use their default payment method without explicitly offering it and thereby invoking legal trouble.

However, the departure of Skrill and Neteller can be seen as an endorsement of the strength of the update law. Beforehand, the duo were seen as neutral facilitators but today, there is a stark choice: comply with regulations, or aid illegal offerings and potentially face the consequences.

It is not clear yet whether Skrill and Neteller will be available again to Dutch players in the future. Trustly, which also moved out of offering services to Dutch players from offshore casinos when licensing kicked in, is now active with licensed operators Holland Casino Online and GGPoker. While iDEAL is going nowhere as the market leader, the addition of formerly popular payment options to the mix by legal Dutch entities will give more players a reason to play at such casinos. With the KSA’s four-fifths channelisation target only a couple of years away, that can only be good news for all parties committed to making the legal landscape in the Netherlands a resounding success.