Regulation round-up 20 January 2015
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (14 January to 20 January 2015)
South Africa government rules out online gambling regulation
Parliament has “no intention” to push through online legislation as trade body issues warning of widespread clampdown
South Africa’s government says online gaming will “remain a banned activity” and has pledged to crack down on the practice, seemingly dashing any hopes of the country implementing an online regulatory framework in the near future.
In a statement issued yesterday by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), South Africa’s ruling parliament said it had “no intention” to legalise online gambling and warned that offering the products could lead to fine of up to ZAR10m (£566k) and up to 10 years in jail.
The news comes after opposition politician Geordin Hill-Lewis last week revived his remote gambling bill and said he was “optimistic” regarding its chances of legalising the activity.
Operators to mount German VAT challenge
A number of operators are preparing to mount a legal challenge against Germany’s decision to apply value added tax (VAT) to gaming profits following recent changes to how the levy is applied across Europe.
eGaming Review understands the likes of bwin.party and GVC Holdings are among the companies to have instructed lawyers to build a case against the introduction of the tax after EU member states were instructed to apply the levy on a point of consumption basis from 1 January.
The change has seen Germany-facing egaming operators hit with a 19% tax on online casino and poker profits, although it is believed some operators will refuse to pay their bills until all legal avenues have been exhausted.
Seven days in regulation:
South African remote gambling bill revived
South African politician Geordin Hill-Lewis has revived his remote gambling bill and is “optimistic” about its chances despite ongoing confusion surrounding the government’s stance on the legalisation of egaming.
The bill will be tabled with South Africa’s parliament when it re-opens in February with the hope of prompting further progress towards regulating the country’s online market.
Speaking to South African publication IT Web, Hill-Lewis said he was confident of the bill’s success despite the parliament’s previous “superficial” attitude towards online gambling.
Amaya “anticipated” PokerStars investigation, says Baazov
Amaya Gaming CEO David Baazov (pictured) has said the firm “anticipated” the ongoing investigation into its $4.9bn acquisition of PokerStars and Full Tilt parent company the Rational Group by financial regulators in Quebec, Canada.
Baazov told the Business News Network that the “historical stock run-up” to the takeover was something the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) “should be looking into”, but said there was no evidence to indicate any wrongdoing by the Toronto-based firm.
“I think the AMF is looking into something they should be looking into, and looking into what has led to that stock run up,” Baazov said. “But we have no evidence to believe there is any wrongdoing by any office, director or employee, and we are cooperating with the investigation,” he added.
Belgium regulator bans foreign live dealers
Belgium’s Gaming Commission has set out plans to enforce a ban on remote live dealer casino suppliers from its online market with the requirements set to come into effect within weeks.
In a change to the country’s licensing framework, the regulator has demanded that all live dealer tables are based in Belgium, and operators currently using international tables will either have to change suppliers or stop offering the product altogether.
The Commission made the announcement late last week and called on all licensed operators offering live dealer games to declare their set-up by last Friday, with any necessary changes to be set out within the following two weeks.