Ladbrokes receives Belgium boost with Playtech live casino

Ladbrokes has sealed a deal with long-term partner Playtech to ensure the operator is compliant with Belgium’s ban on foreign live casino suppliers, eGaming Review has learned.

The Belgian Gaming Commission (Kansspelcommissie) first announced the ban, which comes into force today, earlier this year, requiring all operators to use only live dealer suppliers based in Belgium.

eGR understands Ladbrokes has agreed a deal with the software supplier giant which has itself received an extension from the regulator and is currently in the process of setting up its own live dealer facility in the country.

The firm’s new Belgium-based live casino studio is expected to be fully operational within the next few months as it looks to compete with the likes of Evolution Gaming, which already has a number of Belgium partnerships in place.

Although Ladbrokes declined to comment on the story, last month it told eGR it was “working on a solution to remain compliant in relation to our live casino offering in Belgium”.

When first announcing the ban, Kansspelcommissie gave operators until the start of February to provide the regulator with details of their dealer set-up but later extended the deadline date for a total of seven operators.

Operators not compliant in time were subject to financial penalties imposed by the regulator but operators including Unibet and bwin.party signed agreements with Evolution Gaming in May to utilise the firm’s live dealer solution based in Evolution’s new studio at the Casino de Spa.