Kenyan government ups the ante in sports betting dispute
Interior ministry orders deportation of 17 directors of sports betting firms
The row between the Kenyan government and local sports betting firms took another twist on Wednesday when the Kenyan interior ministry ordered the deportation of 17 directors of betting companies.
The names of the directors have not been confirmed, however Reuters reports that the group includes Bulgaria, Italy, Russia and Poland nationals.
It follows the Kenyan high court confirming it would not overrule the government’s decision to suspend betting licences until responses have been received from the Kenyan Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) and several other government agencies.
These agencies, together with Kenya’s largest payments processor Safaricom Limited, have three days to file their respective responses to the lawsuit.
Elsewhere, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has notified the country’s banks to halt the provision of banking services to betting firms deemed to have failed to comply with state tax regulations.
In its letter to banking firms, the CBK confirms the names of the sports betting providers whose licences have not been renewed, directing the banks to suspend payment services.
Following up on its earlier advert in the Kenyan press, SportPesa has taken out a separate advertisement highlighting its customer base, amid allegations that it is being used by underage gamblers in Kenya.
The advert featured in Kenya’s newspapers earlier this week
In its latest ad, SportPesa utilises Google analytics to illustrate its user demographics, revealing that almost 60% of its customers in Kenya are aged 25-34 years old.
The ad confirms that the Kenyan version of the SportPesa site received 705,813 visitors in June alone.
The SportPesa analysis also shows that 23% of users of its site are between 35-44 years old while just 5% of users are between the ages of 18-24.