‘War is over’ – now for the debate
UK risk checks battle, Alabama OSB, tribal compact update +More
The House of Commons debate on financial risk checks comes ‘too late’.
In +More: More fantasy AG moves, NY iCasino blow, NC approvals.
Alabama Senate hits the brakes on OSB legislation.
The federal government updates tribal compact approval process.
Risk checks ‘war is over’
No man’s land: The UK gambling sector and its surrogates in racing that have forced a debate in Westminster Hall next week on the issue of financial risk checks have been accused of fighting a battle that is already over, according to a long-standing gambling reform campaigner.
Face facts: Matt Zarb-Cousin, co-founder at Gamban and formerly a leading voice within the Campaign for Fairer Gambling, said the sector needed to “reconcile itself to what’s actually happening and the reality of the situation, which is that this is happening now.”
“I think that they’re still fighting either by themselves or through proxies, a war that’s already finished,” he added.
And it’s too late, baby, now it’s too late: Richard McCall, CEO at open banking solutions provider Armalytix, agreed that the decision on financial risk checks has already been made by the government and by extension the UK Gambling Commission.
“This consultation has been going on for five years or more and was supposed to be published by the end of 2021,” he said.
“It seems late, therefore, to turn back the clock, and the government and Gambling Commission will be keen to push through changes.”
Hear me out: The comments come ahead of the debate next Monday, February 26, which was forced upon the government by a racing industry-sponsored petition that gathered over 100k signatures late last year.
The man on the Clapham omnibus: Tom Kerr, editor at the Racing Post, which was involved heavily in promoting the petition, said it was in part driven by “frustration” on the part of consumers and some within racing over the checks currently being deployed by operators.
He added that “what was missing” from the whole debate over financial risk checks – what were previously termed as ‘affordability measures’ – was the voice of the consumer.
“We thought it was important that this was spearheaded by racing and not the betting industry,” he added.
Flying lessons: Recent comments from Andrew Rhodes, CEO at the UKGC, suggested the results of the consultation into the financial risk checks proposals would be published very soon – with speculation being that it could happen tomorrow, Friday (see below) – and that after that a pilot study would be launched.
McCall said the “picture is becoming clearer” with the UKGC “active in attempting to address industry conceptions” around the proposed checks.
The pilot is the “next step” and will be positive in terms of assessing how the proposed checks will work in reality and “what it really means for operators and customers.”
U Aye: Zarb-Cousin noted there are “plenty” of tech solutions available to ensure the pilot study will work, with lots of companies investing in “doing this in a way that is going to be positive in terms of the user journey.”
Unsurprisingly, McCall agrees: “Luckily, the advent of open banking turns what would previously have been a very difficult task into a simple check that takes moments.”
Division bell: Notably, the timings of the publication of the consultation and the steps needed to put a pilot study in place and allow it time to work will likely mean it is completed after the next election.
Publication day
Limits ahoy: Right on cue, according to The Guardian the consultation on stake limits is likely to be published tomorrow, Friday. The paper said the Commission will confirm the new online slot stake limits of £5 and £2 for under-25s.
If this were to be the case, it seems highly likely the results of the financial risk checks consultation will be published at the same time.
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North America
PrizePicks has stated In a letter to the Californian AG’s office that fantasy sports contests qualify as games of skill, according to LegalSportsReport, which has seen the 42-page missive.
Recall, AG Rob Bonta was reported in November to be looking into the DFS legality question at the request of State Sen. Scott Wilk.
Meanwhile, the Massachusetts AG is preparing cease-and-desists letters, according to the minutes from a recent Massachusetts Gaming Commission meeting. AG Pat Moore told the MGC last week that his office would “like to explore civil enforcement in this area to see if it can be effective.”
New York blowback: Workers at the Resorts World New York casino at Aqueduct in Queens have attacked the iCasino bill put forward by state Sen. Joe Addabbo. As reported by the New York Post, iCasino legalization would “hurt workers like us and our industry in order to benefit a handful of companies [that] are seeking massive profits at our expense.”
North Carolina: The opening of North Carolina’s sports-betting market on March 11 will potentially feature eight licensees, the regulator said Tuesday. The hopeful operators are undergoing license approval procedures and would be allowed to register users by March 1.
The grateful eight: So far, BetMGM, ESPN Bet, FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars, bet365, Fanatics and Underdog are the names bidding to serve the Tar Heel State.
Florida: Gaming lawyer Daniel Wallach has filed an amicus brief with the US Supreme Court in support of West Flagler Associates’ petition, seeking review of Florida’s gaming compact with the Seminole.
Global
Brazil: The news that the expected regulator Jose Francisco Manssur has stepped down as a special advisor to the government has thrown the process of regulating sports betting and iCasino into confusion. According to news site Globo, Manssur was informed of his departure on Friday last week.
Netherlands: The Dutch Ministry of Justice has launched a public consultation on its proposed new rules regarding player deposit limits, running until April 3. The proposals introduce maximum monthly deposit limits on a per-operator basis of $378 for players who are 24 or older and $162 for players aged 18-23.
Malta: Kanon Gaming has been fined $72,000 by Malta’s anti-money laundering unit for numerous regulatory breaches. According to enforcement officials, the operator failed to obtain information on the source of wealth of their clients in 90% of the files reviewed.
In one example, a noted high-risk client deposited €21,000 in the span of a year, with no supporting documentation to establish where the funds came from.
The company failed to gather basic information, such as what players did for a living, the regulator said.
Italy: A raid on a bar in Syracuse, Sicily, by Italian prosecutors uncovered two unauthorized video game terminals, landing the owner a $21,000 fine. The establishment may be shuttered for 30 to 60 days and slapped with a further $108,000 penalty should the licensee not pay up.
Australia: The BetStop self-exclusion scheme has seen 17k+ people register in the first six months of operation. The Australian Communications and Media Authority reported that almost half of registrations were people under 30 years old.
Careers+More
Massachusetts Gaming Commission chair Cathy Judd-Stein is to retire next month when her five-year term expires.
National Indian Gaming Commission chair E. Sequoyah Simermeyer has resigned from the post as of this week.
Earnings+More: Capital Markets Forum
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Alabama hits the brake
Slow your roll (tide): Alabama’s Senate is in no rush to pass legislation that will open the state to gambling despite near unanimous support from the lower house. “There’s some issues with the bill,” state Sen. Will Barfoot told the media Tuesday, adding that other members have also identified wrangles to be ironed out before it goes to a vote.
HB 151 removes the Yellowhammer State’s constitutional gambling prohibition, while HB 152 authorizes legal casino gaming provisions in specific locations, a statewide lottery and online sports betting.
Barfoot said it would be “an uphill battle for that piece of legislation to pass in the format that it is now” but declined to go into specifics over his grievances.
The legislation won’t appear in the upper chamber’s agenda this week as horse trading continues, said Sen. Greg Albritton, who backed the bills last week.
“We’re gonna spend some time on it,” said state Senate president pro-tem Greg Reed, adding that “when you listen to everybody's input, you wind up with a better product”.
Creek will rise: Legislators are said to be negotiating the inclusion of Medicaid expansion and the status of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, which is concerned about its ability to offer fresh gaming options, according to the wording of the legislation.
Tribal leaders have submitted two amendments: a new casino for Birmingham rather than northeast Alabama, and for gaming operators to be given the opportunity to make last and best bids for new casino licenses.
Other critics include the Alabama Policy Institute, a nonprofit conservative think tank, which issued a report demanding changes and calling the proposals a “hotbed of corruption” with “vague and intentionally positive” language.
“It is not a representation of the foils of this proposal and is meant to mislead the public into voting for something they might not support otherwise,” the report said.
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Tribal compact update
The final word: The US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs has updated federal regulations governing Tribal-State gaming compacts to clarify the legality of the kind of agreement the Seminole Tribe enjoys in Florida.
The “final rule” acknowledges and agrees with the DC Circuit Court’s decision in the Florida sports-betting case that a compact “may include provisions addressing regulatory issues concerning state-wide mobile wagering provided that state law authorizes the portion of the wager transaction occurring off of Indian lands.”
The rule covers all Class III gaming, which includes slots, table games and sports betting.
The times they are a-changin’: The introductory spiel noted the “evolution in the gaming industry and ongoing litigation” as reasons why the department had to clarify how it analyzes Tribal-State gaming compacts and their compliance with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA).
Gaming regulatory lawyer Jeff Ifrah of Ifrah Law commented that the BIA’s final rules “do not authorize tribes to participate in statewide gaming when state law does not permit tribes to do so.”
He added that the rules defer to the DC Circuit Court’s decision in West Flagler Associates v. Haaland, which held that IGRA does not permit customers located outside tribal lands to access gaming servers on tribal lands.
“Tribal operators that want to participate in statewide gaming can, of course, do so when state law permits and pursuant to state programs and regulations.”
Lest we forget: People could litigate these rules. Of course, there is still an appeal in the West Flagler case.
“The plaintiffs in that case filed a cert. petition to the US Supreme Court and it is unlikely that cert. petition will be granted,” says Ifrah.
Colombian RG moves
Head first: The president of Coljuegos, Marco Emilio Hincapié, has announced the regulator is designing Colombia's public policy on responsible gambling, the first of its kind in Latin America. The new policy’s objective was to “raise awareness” about the possible negative effects of gambling and to implement measures such as betting limits, warning messages and self-exclusion tools.
Hincapié said he had encountered “full willingness on the part of operators” in their efforts to protect consumers, especially the most vulnerable, such as young people and those with gambling addiction problems.
Three cheers: According to Coljuegos’ commercial vice-president, Henry García González, the policy is based on three principles:
Protecting the community from the negative consequences of uncontrolled gambling impulses and promoting its development as an activity for healthy recreation and entertainment.
Providing reliable information about the sector for informed and responsible decision-making regarding gambling.
Providing players with tools to prevent excessive gambling and protect themselves and their environment.
Calendar
Mar 5-7: SBC Summit Rio
Mar 20: Kindred Sustainable Gambling Conference, London
Mar 27-28: Player Protection Forum, London
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