First names added to Belgium blacklist
888 and Everest among those named by Gaming Commission.
The Belgian Gaming Commission (BGC) has published the first draft of its egaming blacklist, naming 10 operators including 888, Everest Poker and Titan Poker.
Others on the list, released in tandem with the publication of the first list of licensees, include casino operators jackpotcity.com and megacasino.com.
Chilipoker is also included, although a spokesman for the operator told eGaming Review that it had withdrawn from Belgium and was in conversation with the BGC about having its name removed from the list. A spokesman for 888, meanwhile, declined to comment.
Peter Naessens (pictured), head of the regulatory unit at the BGC, had previously revealed to eGR that the first names would be released at the same time as the first official list of licensed sites, and that financial institutions were being encouraged to end relationships with unlicensed operators.
Yesterday PokerStars became one of eight operators to secure a Belgian egaming licence after a brief test period came to a close, with the Isle of Man-based operator having already received its authorisation from the BGC.
Land-based ties are one of the prerequisites for the approval of egaming operators in the EU member state, and PokerStars’ licence comes as a consequence of its partnership with Circus Groupe, owner of venues including Casino de Namur and Casino de Spa.
Circus.be is another of the names on the white list, along with the online arm of French casino operator Groupe Partouche, while a number of other egaming operators are currently pursuing Belgian licences.
Naessens explained: “To obtain a licence for games of chance you need a partnership with a land-based casino, or to own your own casino like Partouche,” adding that betting licences – the kind applied for by bwin and Unibet – would follow in March.
Bwin.party has applied for both online and land-based licences, while Unibet confirmed its application earlier this month. A spokesman for bwin.party declined to go into any further detail about his company’s application.
Meanwhile other prominent land-based operators such as Ladbrokes and StanleyBet have expressed a desire to apply for a licence but are yet to submit formal applications.
Naessens explained in January that further licences could be awarded in the first half of 2012, while the number of names on the blacklist could rise as high as 100 before the end of the year.
Full list of blacklisted sites (*now closed to Belgian customers):
http://www.myglobalgames.com
http://www.bingo-round.com
http://www.everestpoker.be
http://www.titanpoker.be
http://www.jackpotcity.com
http://www.888.com
http://www.casino.com
http://www.chilipoker.com*
http://www.casinoriva.com
http://www.megacasino.com