Albania prepares offshore operator ban
Prime minister Edi Rama proposes new legislation as part of wider gambling clampdown
Albania is to block overseas operators from offering online gambling services to Albanian citizens in an attempt to claw back an estimated 700m spent on online gambling each year.
The country’s prime minister Edi Rama, elected last June, has announced that the nation’s government is to draft legislation that would block gambling on websites based outside of the country.
Domestic and international analysts estimate Albanians spend between 500m and 700m each year gambling through overseas operators.
The move would effectively blacklist all but domestic operators, following on from countries like Bulgaria that have drawn up extensive blacklists in recent months.
The Bulgarian government passed a motion in March last year mandating that internet service providers in the country must block access to unlicensed gambling sites before comprising a blacklist that now comprises 160 web domains.
Rama’s government has already assessed more than 1,000 land-based casinos and betting shops in the country as part of a wider clampdown on gambling, closing down establishments and taking legal action against owners on the grounds of alleged tax evasion or illegal operation.