Netherlands Gambling Authority publishes updated AML guideline
The Netherlands Gambling Authority has published an updated version of its AML and anti-fraud guideline. The guideline clarifies the obligations of licensed (online) operators according to the Dutch Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft). At present, the gambling-related stipulations of the Wwft only apply to Holland Casino. Once the Remote Gambling Act enters into force, these provisions will also apply to online operators.
In related news, the Dutch regulator also updated its guideline aimed at municipalities regarding land-based gaming machines. The soon-to-be-introduced Remote Gambling Act introduces additional requirements for the operation of land-based slot machines. In the Netherlands, municipalities are partially responsible for the supervision of these machines.
Dutch revenue service to refund gambling tax to Dutch PokerStars players
The Dutch revenue service has decided to refund all gambling taxes paid since 2012 by Dutch players on the profits achieved at the pokerstars.eu domain.
As a general rule, the profits of Dutch poker players, if achieved outside of the Netherlands but inside the EU, are deemed not taxable due to European regulations.
Recently, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands upheld two separate lower court rulings, one of which found that PokerStars – specifically, the pokerstars.eu domain – was based inside of the EU, while the other determined that this specific subsidiary was properly domiciled on the Isle of Man.
Due to these contradictory rulings, the Dutch revenue service decided that there was insufficient legal basis to tax the winnings achieved on pokerstars.eu.
However, since yet another court ruling found that pokerstars.fr – contrary to pokerstars.eu – was, in fact, operated from the Isle of Man, profits achieved at PokerStars’ France-facing website will remain taxable and, thus, will not be refunded.
Upcoming events
The following events may be of interest to the GiH community.
Events
SiGMA Europe has been rescheduled to 13 – 15 April, 2021.
The third edition of CasinoBeats Summit will return to Malta from May 18 – 20, 2021, as part of Spring iGaming Week organized in partnership with KPMG and Gaming Malta.
The Betting on Sports America conference and expo has been scheduled for 8 – 10 June, 2021 and will bring together all the major players in the fast-growing North American sports betting industry.
iGB Live 2021 has also been moved to 28 September – 1 October, 2021, but will still take place in Amsterdam!
The World Gaming Executive Summit is returning live on 6 – 8 December, 2021 at the W Hotel, Barcelona.
ICE London and iGB Affiliate London have been postponed to 1 – 3 February, 2022.
Webinars and virtual events
Mindway AI has published an on-demand webinar on player profiling and efficient responsible gaming interventions.
Sportradar, the global provider of sports betting services, announced the launch of Sportradar Connect, a new curated event series. The first session, on 23 February, 2021, will feature Ted Leonsis, founder, chairman, principal partner and CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment in Washington DC.
The IMGL Virtual Conference, which takes place 8 – 12 March, 2021, will include a session on emerging regulated markets in the Netherlands and Germany.
Join the iGaming Next Power Hour every Friday @3pm CET for a short, compact, educational and social weekly digital gathering with some of the brightest and most connected minds of the industry.
GiH Webinar | Keys for effective player retention in regulated online gaming
The theme for next week's Gaming in Holland webinar “Sneak preview: Online Gaming Management Masterclass - NL Focus” has been further clarified.
Distinguished international iGaming consultants Jason “Wolf” Rosenberg and Itsik Akiva will review the major elements that influence players’ decision to not only stay with your site but also increase their engagement, including:
Effective communication to segmented audiences
Promotional tactics
Loyalty programs
VIP Management practices
The webinar will conclude with an interactive Q&A session.
Please join us on Wednesday February 17 at 3PM CET to learn more.
While this webinar partially looks ahead to the upcoming Online Gaming Management Masterclass - NL Focus, it is first and foremost a valuable stand-alone session on a key aspect of online gaming management that could immediately add to your bottom line.
To register for the FREE webinar, please click here: https://bit.ly/3jyOr0Z
UPDATE: GiH Webinar | Necessary services: How & where to get them
On March 3 at 3PM CET we have scheduled a vendors’ webinar, where suppliers of necessary services will showcase their products and services. If you want to enter the regulated Dutch online market but haven't yet found all the suppliers that you need, this may be the webinar for you!
The following suppliers have confirmed their participation:
Data center services Joël Altyzer, Sr. Account Manager, Interxion
Data safe/vault services Julian Borg-Barthet, Director of BD, Pretty Technical
KYC/CRUKS compliance Martijn de Boer, Founder, CDDN
Platform provider TBA, Finnplay
Platform provider Henk Wolff, CMO Dutch Gambling Association
Platform provider Robert Civill, Director of BD, Gamanza
Games TBA, Stakelogic
Register for the vendors’ webinar here: https://bit.ly/2MGUkxr
PS: In the meantime, don't forget our February 24 webinar: “Outsourcing requirements for operators and third-party suppliers” featuring team KKF, Peter-Paul de Goeij (NOGA), and Francesco Rodan (Playtech). Registration for this webinar is also open. Further details to follow soon!
Other news
Minister for Legal Protection Sander Dekker has answered Parliamentary questions regarding ads promoting current Dutch sports betting monopolist TOTO that were alleged to target young adults.
Betway has quickly removed its app from its Netherlands-facing iOS app store, claiming that the app's availability to Dutch customers was a mistake.
Arno de Jong, Chief Marketing Officer at Nederlandse Loterij, discusses post-merger leadership in this episode of CMOTalk.
Jeroen Verkroost, former Chief Digital Officer at De Persgroep, has been appointed Director of Digital Transformation at Holland Casino.
The Netherlands’ Care-a-Lot charity lottery has welcomed a new beneficiary: Stichting Overleven met Alvleesklierkanker (OAK).
Betsson’s German market revenue declined by around 70% during Q4, as a result of the new casino restrictions imposed by Germany's new transitional regime.
A new study shows that gambling intensity decreased during the spring 2020 Covid-19 lockdown – especially among the biggest spenders.
Kindred has reported that just over 4% of its gross winnings came from high-risk players during the most recent financial quarter.
Former Paddy Power CEO Stewart Kenny argues that the UK government should introduce mandatory deposit and stake limits, as well as a prohibition on the cross-selling of casino products to under-25s, in order to strengthen responsible gaming protections.
Sportradar’s Director of Global Operations, Tom Mace, who oversees the sports data provider's Integrity Services team, looks at the challenges that lie ahead for sports integrity in 2021.
International betting technology firm Kambi reportedly experienced technical difficulties just ahead of Sunday's Superbowl game. As a result, users of multiple popular sports betting apps were unable to place wagers.