GVC and Amaya secure Romanian licences
The two operators had both been operating in the market under an interim licence for the past year
GVC Holdings and Amaya have received approval to continue operating in the Romanian online gambling market after receiving full licences from the country’s regulator.
The two companies had both been operating in Romania under an interim licence since 1 September 2015 and have now been granted new 10-year licences by the National Gambling Office (ONJN).
GVC, which had operated its Sportingbet brand during the interim period, is now free to operate sports betting and casino games via its Headlong Limited subsidiary.
The London-listed operator has also been awarded a Class 2 licence to supply software, affiliate marketing and hosting services to Headlong.
Kenny Alexander, chief executive of GVC, said: “[Romania] is an attractive and growing market where the Sportingbet brand is increasingly popular.
“We are focused on developing our product line there in order to attract new customers and grow our business.”
Meanwhile, Amaya announced it will launch new software in the country to comply with the requirements of its new licence, including an expansion of responsible gambling controls.
The operator will also no longer run its Full Tilt brand and instead migrate all the site’s players to PokerStars.ro.
“We are very happy to offer the world’s leading poker and sports betting brands to Romanians under a local regulatory framework,” Eric Hollreiser, vice president of corporate communications at Amaya, said.
“This demonstrates Amaya’s commitment to the responsible growth of online gaming by supporting local regulation that is good for players, good for operators, and provides revenue for regulators.”
The 10-year licences will both come into effect on 1 September 2016.
The news comes just days after 888 Holdings announced it would unify its casino, poker and sports brands in Romania under a new localised site after securing a full licence to continue its operations in the market.