Nederlandse Loterij and Holland Casino privatization updates expected around summer 2025
During a debate with the Dutch Lower House's Permanent Committee for Finance, Tjebbe van Oostenbruggen, State Secretary for Tax Affairs and Tax Administration, announced that he would inform Parliament on the latest developments regarding the potential privatization of Nederlandse Loterij and Holland Casino “around the summer of 2025.”
Although there has been long-standing interest in privatizing both state-owned operators, agreement on specific timelines has remained elusive.
Perhaps most notably, PVV, the largest political group in the Lower House, is currently in favor of splitting off and privatizing Nederlandse Loterij's online activities as soon as possible, ahead of privatizing the operator's core lottery activities.
Gaming in Europe @ICE: New speaker for Gaming in France Briefing
Gaming in Europe is happy to welcome Clément Martin Saint Léon, Managing Director Gaming at Groupe Barrière, as the final speaker at our Gaming in France Briefing.
Mr. Martin Saint Léon will join Nicolas Béraud, CEO of Betclic Group, and Diane Mullenex, Partner at Pinsent Masons, in discussing the key business and political issues impacting potential online casino regulation in France.
The Gaming in France Briefing takes place Tuesday, January 21, 15:30-17:00.
If you would like to attend this event, click here to register. Please note that only a few spots are still available!
Our other ICE mini events, the Gaming in Germany Breakfast, the Gaming in Holland Lunch, and the Leaders in Compliance Networking Drinks are now fully booked, and we are unable to accommodate additional guests.
However, you can still visit our stand MC12/MC13, where you can learn more about our 2025 events – including the inaugural Leaders in Compliance Conference.
While you are there, don't forget to participate in our raffle for a chance to win a free copy of the Las Vegas Book – a luxurious and majestic tribute to the Las Vegas Strip.
MPs ask for suspension of Unibet's remote license
Following reports that Unibet owner Kindred is no longer sharing players’ transaction histories dating from before October 2021, MPs Mirjam Bikker (CU) and Michiel van Nispen (SP) have submitted parliamentary questions to the State Secretary for Legal Protection asking the government to investigate whether Unibet's remote license can be suspended or repealed.
Bikker and van Nispen claim that Kindred has taken this step to “sabotage” attempts by former players to reclaim their losses suffered during the period that Unibet operated in the Netherlands without a license.
Attorney Benzi Loonstein, who represents many players reclaiming losses from unlicensed operators, previously called on the Lower House to intervene after Kindred's recent decision.
Kindred claims to no longer have access to this data following its acquisition by FDJ and the resulting split of its previous parent company Trannel International Ltd.
“Second restructuring of Janshen-Hahnraths necessary”
Janshen-Hahnraths, owner of the Fair Play casino brand, is suffering financial losses that make a second restructuring necessary, Quote reports. A first round of restructuring was announced in the spring of 2024.
Perhaps not coincidentally, the company recently announced that it has lowered the minimum age for entry into its land-based properties to 18 from the previous 21 years of age.
Holland Casino visitors donate €55,000 to Ambulance Wish Foundations
Visitors of the Holland Casino Enschede, Groningen, and Leeuwarden venues have jointly donated €55,000 to two regional foundations that assist terminally ill people in visiting special locations.
Holland Casino Enschede Operations Manager, Rolf Paapst commented: “I think it's wonderful that the employees of Holland Casino have picked this cause. And I think it's even better that our guests have supported it so heartwarmingly.”
Stake continues global expansion with acquisition of Denmark-facing VinderCasino brand
Online gambling operator Stake is set to expand its presence into Demark after entering into an agreement to acquire MocinoPlay, the company behind the VinderCasino brand.
The deal, Stake said, supports its ongoing strategic push into regulated markets around the world.
“We are demonstrating our clear ability to be successful in highly regulated markets,” Brais Pena, chief strategy officer at Easygo, the company behind Stake, said. “This provides us with a blueprint for entry in other territories where compliance is crucial.”
Netherlands Gambling Authority releases Supervisory Agenda 2025
The Netherlands Gambling Authority has published its supervisory agenda for 2025, in which it promises to focus on four key pillars:
Participation of minors and young adults in legal gambling
Operators’ duty of care
Enforcement against illegal operators and their facilitators
Advertising compliance
Meanwhile, the Dutch regulator already issued seven warnings over advertising violations. Four of these warning concerned violations on the ban of role models in gambling advertising. Several operators displayed advertising that indirectly referred to F1 driver Max Verstappen, albeit without directly depicting or mentioning him. “The Netherlands Gambling Authority takes this kind of creative attempts to circumvent the ban on role models very seriously,” the regulator said on its website.
Lastly, the Dutch regulator announced that it issued a €1,275,000 fine to Winning Poker Network (WPN) for offering unlicensed online gambling in the country.
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