Flying lessons: Rhodes puts faith in financial risk checks pilot
UKGC CEO comments, Alabama progress, UK public health row, Australian junket case +More
UKGC’s Rhodes says pilot studies will inform financial risk checks endgame.
In +More: Brazil windows, Belgian bans.
Alabama legislators ready a comprehensive gaming bill.
Suicide stats row sparks neutrality concerns over UK public health expert.
Australian casino junket case thrown out.
UK risk checks pilot study
Chocks away: The CEO of the UK Gambling Commission said pilot studies testing how financial risk checks can be applied across the online sector would provide the regulator with the necessary information to help it guide operators on how the system will function.
Learning on the job: Andrew Rhodes told a seminar hosted by law firm Wiggin ahead of ICE this week in London that the pilot studies from the soon-to-be published consultation exercise on financial risk checks – the so-called affordability measures – would help the regulator “assess how this all works in practice.”
“They can tell us how this works and how the industry can apply it,” he told the audience.
“I think, through the pilots, the industry will want [the UKGC] to be a bit more prescriptive.”
Rhodes’ comments confirmed what had been said a day earlier by UKGC executive director Tim Miller, who had promised “something new” for the sector in the coming weeks.
Tight schedule: Sources suggested the results of the consultation exercise undertaken by the Commission would be published before the end of the month and ahead of the Westminster Hall debate in parliament forced on the government by the recent petition on affordability checks launched by the racing industry.
“I think the government will want to get their ducks in a row on that one,” said one industry source on the sidelines of the Wiggin event.
Still, the timelines from here will be important as a pilot study of any meaningful length could mean the final regulations will come under a new government.
Daddy knows best: Asked whether the Commission was guilty of being too paternalistic, Rhodes admitted it was a difficult question to answer. “We regulate because a lot of people gamble,” he said. “One of the principles of the Gambling Act is that it is a permissive act.”
“Much as people talk about it being restrictive, it really isn’t in comparison to other places,” he added.
He pointed out that it would be “really nice if no one was harmed” by gambling but “that’s not possible.”
“But I do think it is possible to reduce some of the issues that have become politically toxic,” he said.
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North America
DeSanctify: Florida governor Ron DeSantis has reportedly put his weight behind a legislative effort to get authorization for a casino in Miami Beach. According to the Miami Herald, DeSantis supports the attempt by hotelier Jerry Soffer to open a casino at his Fontainebleau property.
Virginia: A bill to replace Richmond with Petersburg as a city eligible for development of a new casino has passed the state Senate. Richmond voters rejected a referendum to approve a casino last year for the second time. Cordish has proposed a $1.4bn casino in Petersburg.
Pennsylvania: Gov. Josh Shapiro has included revenue from legalizing and taxing skill games in his budget proposal for fiscal 2024-25. The budget proposal includes a 42% GGR tax rate on skill games and forecasts the state would collect $150m in tax revenue in the first year.
Michigan: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s budget includes new money for RG programs to be undertaken by the Michigan Gaming Control Board. According to SBC Americas, Whitmer wants $4m to go to the Compulsive Gaming Prevention Fund with further funding earmarked for expanding the board’s regulatory capacity.
Arguing the toss: The Massachusetts Gaming Board has nixed novelty prop bets on this weekend’s Super Bowl, including any wager on the coin toss.
Global
Window of opportunity: The man tipped to be Brazil’s gambling regulator, José Francisco Manssur, said at ICE this week that the first licensing window for online operators would be open from Mar-Jun with a second planned for Oct-Dec.
Belgium’s Chamber of Deputies has approved a new gambling bill that will raise the minimum gambling age to 21 and outlaw bonuses of any kind. Additionally, all gambling advertising will be banned in principle, unless explicitly exempted in a separate Royal Decree.
Online operators may no longer offer different kinds of gambling, such as casino and sports betting, through the same website.
Belgium’s National Lottery will be exempted from the advertising ban.
Face(book) the music: French gambling regulator l'Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has warned consumers about illegal gambling websites using the brand of licensed operators to promote their services on Facebook. ANJ has reported approximately 400 website URLs to Facebook parent company Meta, triggering the closure of 137 user accounts on the social network.
Fraudsters create fake promotional images using brands owned by approved operators by way of drawing players to unlicensed sites that have no affiliation with the licensees.
Give it back: The Netherlands’ gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has given an operator a formal warning for giving cashback bonuses to losing punters. “In the Netherlands, these bonuses, where you get part of your loss back afterwards, are not allowed,” it said. Letters have been sent to two other licensees to clarify the KSA’s broad stance on offering bonuses.
Pull the other one: The secretary-general of the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling (BOS), Gustaf Hoffstedt, has argued in an op-ed in the Expressen that gambling ads within Stockholm’s public transport system helps keep transport fees low while also aiding channelization.
The International Betting Integrity Association has recorded a drop in the annual number of suspicious betting alerts. The 184 total alerts from 2023 translated to a 35% drop from 285 in 2022. The UK flagged more alerts than any other country, while football was the sport with the highest number of alerts (63), followed by tennis (54).
What we’re reading
Bad timing: Bally’s-owned Gamesys was given the highest safety rating by GamCare at the same time it was under investigation over RG failures by the UKGC, according to The Daily Telegraph.
Alabama readies proposals
On every street: A group of Alabama legislators announced Wednesday they are to publish a comprehensive gaming bill that would create a lottery, casinos and allow sportsbooks in the state. At a press conference at the State Capitol, the legislators said Alabama has illegal gambling in every county and the new measures would help tackle the growing black market problem.
Voters will have to approve an amendment to the state’s constitution in order for a lottery and other gambling to be legal.
Multiple gambling bills in the legislature have failed, but none have had this level of support across the political divide.
Alabama Rep. Andy Whitt has been spearheading the push.
He said the proposals that will be formally introduced Thursday (today) would take on the problem of illegal gaming.
Casinos would pay a 24% tax rate on net revenue of gaming proceeds and a rate of 17% would apply to sports-betting revenues.
Come up and see me: Whitt chairs the House Economic Development and Tourism Committee, which is in line to review the legislation. He said he is often approached by constituents and neighbors and asked why gambling is illegal.
He said times have changed, and the measures will give people the first chance since 1998 to choose if they want gambling in the state.
“I’ve seen the polling and I’ve personally heard from folks everywhere I go. The people want to vote and they deserve the right to vote,” added Whitt.
Alabama Rep. Chris Blackshear said the state plans to negotiate with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians on a gaming agreement.
Up to 10 casinos could be licensed, including three currently operated by the PBCI in Atmore, Wetumpka and Montgomery, as well as potentially a fourth Poarch Creek casino depending on the negotiation of a compact.
The legislators released the following revenue projections:
Casinos: $298m–$422m
Sports betting: $10m
Lottery: $194m
Compact with Poarch Creeks: $300m
Total: $802m to $1.011bn
If approved by three-fifths of lawmakers, the proposal would be put on the ballot for voters to decide. “We’re trending in the right direction,” said Blackshear, of efforts to get the required 63 votes to pass.
Nebraska ballot effort
Testing the waters: A coalition of operators has teamed up with the economic development arm of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska in an effort to get sports betting put on the ballot in November. FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Caesars have partnered with Ho-Chunk to commission an opinion poll gauging Nebraskans' interest in a potential amendment to the state’s constitution to allow OSB, according to the Lincoln Journal Star.
As it stands, the state only has retail betting, but Lance Morgan, CEO of Ho-Chunk, the parent of WarHorse Gaming, said OSB was “something people want.”
Ho-Chunk hopes to avoid the costs of petition and that it can persuade legislators to agree to put a measure on the ballot.
Wyoming iCasino push
Yeehah: A bill has been introduced to authorize and regulate iCasino in the Cowboy State with a 10% tax proposal and at least five licensees. BetMGM, DraftKings, FanDuel and Caesars Entertainment already operate OSB in the state, while Fanatics Sportsbook and Barstool Sports have also received approvals.
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UKGC advisor under fire
Loaded dice: The chair of the UK Gambling Commission’s Responsible Gambling Strategy Board, Anna van der Gaag, has said the board’s actions are driven by “people and families harmed by gambling.”
This means Waugh: Van der Haag revealed the bias in communications with the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities and emphasized her position in an email exchange with Dan Waugh of Regulus Partners.
The stated aim of the advisory board is “to provide independent advice” to the Gambling Commission on research, education and treatment programmes needed to support a national gambling strategy.
“There is clearly a bias here,” said Waugh. “There is an absence of moral neutrality that is diametrically opposed to the independence that the board is supposed to exhibit.”
Lies, damned lies and… The communications between Van der Haag and the government department were driven by a debate about the veracity of suicide statistics in a Public Health England report, which Waugh claimed were incorrect and misleading.
Waugh reported his concerns to the Gambling Commission, which agreed that the report’s estimates were not based on reliable data. The Commission subsequently admitted it had excluded the suicide statistics from its advice to the government due to concerns about their quality.
However, Van der Haag claimed the accuracy of the statistics was secondary to the concerns of the families of those harmed by gambling.
“In what other part of health research would we say that mortality estimates don't need to be accurate?” said Waugh. “This statistic has been used in support of radical market restrictions and the head of the board that advises the Commission on research says that it is incorrect but it doesn’t matter.”
A policy expert added: "The tragedy of those who have had their lives wrecked by suicide cannot be underestimated but that does not mean their interests alone should be allowed to dictate policy or to distort the evidence base."
The Gambling Commission did not return requests for comment.
Casino junket case
No charge: The case against an Australian casino charged with breaking state laws has been tossed out of court. The Ville Resort-Casino in North Queensland was facing three charges relating to its operating license and gambling activities by the Office of Liquor and Gambling Regulation (OLGR).
The charges were made public in December 2022 after an investigation by Channel Nine's 60 Minutes program, which alleged the Townsville casino bribed an illegal junket operator with “cash and loyalty points” to lure whales.
In Queensland, junkets require approval under existing casino laws.
Last month, the Ville’s operators, Breakwater Island Ltd, pleaded not guilty to all charges.
I’ve got nothing: On the first day of what was expected to be a five-day hearing, prosecutor April Freeman said the case would no longer be proceeding. Magistrate Richard Lehmann said the prosecution held “no evidence” and the charges were dismissed.
The Ville is owned by the Morris Group, whose chief executive Penny Cottle said it would continue to liaise with the OLGR to ensure regulations were upheld.
“This is a vindication of our strong belief that we follow our obligations and we operate legally," she said.
“From the outset, we were of the view that all charges lacked a factual and legal basis.”
“These proceedings have resulted in substantial legal costs and have over the past two years taken a significant toll on our employees.”
Can’t handle the truth: Cottle said she was unable to comment on why the charges were dropped. A spokesperson for the Department of Justice and Attorney-General said the OLGR uncovered “evidential issues” during trial preparation.
“That impeded OLGR’s ability to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt,” the statement said.
“OLGR takes casino compliance very seriously and is working closely with all Queensland casino operators to improve standards.”
Calendar
Mar 5-7: SBC Summit Rio
Mar 27-28: Player Protection Forum, London
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