Derailed
Thai casinos bill the victim of tariff emergency
Parliament halts discussions on gaming, concentrates on trade.
Kalshi gives the Nevada regulator a bloody nose.
Dutch regulator intensifies efforts against black market apps.
The UK regulator includes crash games warning in AML update.
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Play the victim
You turn if you want to: Ahead of President Trump’s U-turn on reciprocal tariffs late yesterday, the Thai government reached an agreement with parliament to delay discussing the potential opening up of the country’s gaming market in order to prioritize its response to the threat posed by the imposition of a 36% levy on exports to the US.
The Thai casino measure was given clearance by the cabinet just last week, with projects expected to be launched in Bangkok, Chon Buri, Chiang Mai and Phuket.
However, the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration fuelled an urgent debate in parliament, which meant all other business was suspended.
According to Bloomberg, Thailand is among the country’s hardest hit by the tariffs that went into force yesterday, April 9. The US was Thailand’s largest export market last year, with electronics, machinery and agricultural products topping the list of goods.
Not all is lost: Still, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra emphasized the government is not withdrawing the proposal for casino-led entertainment resorts.
After meeting with leaders of political parties in her coalition, Shinawatra noted the government would continue to listen to all opinions.
This includes the potential for the bill to be reintroduced to parliament in its next session later this year.
“We will not withdraw it but we will continue to listen to all opinions,” the Bangkok Post reported the PM as saying.
In de-layman’s terms: The delay comes as opposition to the casinos element of the Entertainment Complex bill has been building, with demonstrations taking place within the last week led by doctors and academics.
The demonstrators claimed that legalizing casinos “will only worsen social problems and leave people trapped in a maze of gambling, increasing crime rates, drug problems, human trafficking, money laundering and other shady businesses.”
They added that the economy “will not improve as claimed, but [legal casinos] will be a catastrophe for the country.”
Survivalist: The move to delay the debate over the legislation contradicts a statement made by the deputy prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, just days before, who insisted the Entertainment Complex bill would act as a necessary economic stimulus measure in the face of the tariff threat.
Wechayachai told the Bangkok Post the bill wasn’t about “encouraging gambling” but was “about economic survival.”
Thai officials previously claimed each of the four complexes would attract investment of ~THB100bn (~$3bn) and generate a total of 20,000 jobs between them.
The government estimated the spend per foreign tourist would rise by 40% per trip.
Names in the hat: Among the global gaming groups said to be interested in taking up the Thai opportunity are Galaxy Entertainment, MGM Resorts and Las Vegas Sands, while Melco Resorts has already taken the step of opening an office in Bangkok.
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Kalshi’s Nevada win
Carry on wayward son: Kalshi has given Nevada a bloody nose after a federal judge said the prediction market can continue offering sports events contracts while the two sides continue to litigate.
US District Court Judge Andrew P. Gordon approved, in part, Kalshi’s request for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against the state’s cease-and-desist directive.
The Nevada Gaming Commission’s counter-motion to shut down Kalshi’s operations was immediately tossed, and a written ruling on the matter is expected soon.
Stepping up: Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour hailed the decision and said it was “on to the next step.”
“We are grateful for the court’s careful attention to this matter and recognition of Kalshi’s status as a Commodity Futures Trading Commission-regulated exchange,” he said.
Break stuff: The ruling offers breathing room as Kalshi faces a similar fight in multiple other states, including New Jersey, Illinois, Maryland, Ohio and Montana.
Regulators have been quick to issue C&Ds to operators offering prediction markets, particularly those tied to sports events, with Polymarket, Robinhood and Crypto.com also receiving notices.
On the back of its high-profile legal victory against the CFTC last year concerning election betting, Kalshi has pushed into sports markets with wagers on the Super Bowl and NCAA’s March Madness.
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Hawaii: An amended version of the OSB bill has received approval from the full state Senate and now returns to the state House. The only change to the previously approved bill is a switch in the proposed regulator to the state Department of Law Enforcement. Once approved, the amended bill will head to the desk of Gov. Josh Green, who said previously he is neutral on gaming.
Colombia: GGR from licensed online operators has dropped 30% since the introduction of VAT on player deposits in January, according to the Colombian Federation of Gambling Entrepreneurs. The federation claims the tax is resulting in broad-based declines in player deposit frequency and amounts. The new emergency tax rate of 19% went live in late February and is expected to remain in place until December.
Pennsylvania authorities issued 18 cease-and-desist letters to sweepstakes operators on Monday this week, according to PlayPennsylvania, which said all of the sites have complied with the order. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board’s chief counsel Steve Cook has suggested amending the state Gaming Act to grant the board more power to deal with sweepstakes platforms.
Easter break: Australian venues have been warned not to allow gambling outside of trading hours as Easter approaches. Last year, 14 operators were fined for allowing customers to use pokie machines during the restricted holiday period, the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission said.
Sweden’s gambling regulator has said current laws make it difficult to block unlicensed operators unless they directly target Swedish users, prompting calls for broader licensing rules. A government review of the country’s Gambling Act is now underway and due to report back by September 2025.
Drop the pilot: Atlantic County has secured a $15m settlement with the state over changes to New Jersey’s casino PILOT law that excluded online gambling and sports betting from revenue calculations.
Bettor days: Massachusetts lawmakers have introduced the Bettor Health Act, proposing a tax hike on online sportsbooks to 51%, a ban on in-game betting ads and daily wagering limits tied to affordability checks. Senator John Keenan said the bill responds to growing public concern over the saturation of gambling in sports broadcasts.
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Dutch app removal
Un-appy: The gambling regulator in the Netherlands, the KSA, said it has “intensified” its efforts to curb the activities of illegal gambling apps by overseeing the removal of 30 of them from app stores since the start of the year.
The KSA said the issue of the availability of apps that redirect consumers to illegal, offshore websites was becoming “increasingly urgent.”
“These websites are often accessible to minors, which makes the situation even more concerning,” the press release stated.
Fake it til you make it: It pointed out many of these apps are advertised via social media. “Illegal providers often use deceptive techniques to persuade consumers, such as displaying the logos of licensed operators,” the KSA added.
The regulator noted recently an app was reported in the app store that misused the Holland Casino logo.
It added that it is also common to advertise a seemingly innocent game – often a variant of the popular ‘plinko’ – but after downloading, users are redirected to illegal gambling websites.
Call me: “It is very important to the KSA that consumers continue reporting these types of apps so that this process can continue throughout the year,” the statement continued.
“When reporting advertisements for gambling games, it is essential that the name of the app being promoted is included in the report.”
The KSA said that in addition to reports from consumers, it is increasingly receiving notifications from industry associations and licensed casinos.
It cited the example of a website called Meld Vals Spel or ‘Report Fake Game’, a platform set up by industry bodies VNLOK and NOGA for reporting illegal gambling sites.
Reports received through that platform are also investigated by the KSA.
The body has working agreements with app stores to report illegal apps and subsequently have them removed.
Offshoring: Separately, the KSA has announced it has fined Techno Offshore €1.2m for providing online gambling services to Dutch consumers via its websites simplecasino.com and nolimitbet.com without a Netherlands licence.
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Crash out
Crash the party: The UK Gambling Commission said it is aware of “increased interest” in crash games with the licensed sector and said it wanted to draw attention to the “risks of this game type,” including the fact they were “highly volatile and can lead to significant losses for players.”
It added that there are “concerns” the structure of the games can allow criminals to camouflage high-risk behavior within the context of the game’s mechanics where such behaviors are more common.
The Commission warned that “transactional monitoring controls may not be effective in detecting suspicious activity.”
Bit Bybit: The warning came with the latest advice of emerging AML and terrorist financing risks. Among the areas of concern highlighted was the growing interest in cryptocurrencies, with the Commission singling out the news from February of a theft of crypto assets from the Bybit exchange.
The Commission said the group alleged to be responsible for the theft were suspected to use complex online money laundering systems, which in the past have been thought to include remote gambling operators around the world.
Regulatory events
Apr 24: The future for the UK gambling sector, London
May 14: Player Protection Symposium, SBC Americas, Fort Lauderdale
Jun 5: Gaming in Holland, Amsterdam
Jun 9-12: IAGA, Berlin
Jun 26: Gaming in Spain, Madrid
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