Casumo joins operators blocking Dutch players
The online gambling operator hopes to apply for a licence to be able to operate in the Netherlands from next year.
The Netherlands.- Casumo has joined the list of online gambling operators that have begun blocking Dutch players after the launch of licensed online gambling in the country at the weekend. It said it was preparing to apply for a licence in the Netherlands and hopes to be able to begin operating in 2022.
The company said the decision was taken in alignment with its “strategic ambition to further develop and grow brands in locally regulated markets.”
Casumo noted that it had not been targeting Dutch customers due to the Dutch regulator KSA’s “cooling-off period” required for operators who were active in the unregulated market.
Licensed online gambling in the Netherlands went live on Saturday after a last-minute delay caused by a malfunction in the self-exclusion system Cruks.
Only 10 operators have received licences, but René Jansen, chair of the KSA, expects more applications to come in. He said the market would not reach its final form until around April next year.
Several major operators, including Entain, Betsson and LeoVegas, immediately announced ahead of the launch that they would begin blocking Dutch players in order to comply with the Netherlands’ new legislation and would apply for licences in due course.
Kindred Group and 888 have since followed suit. Kindred said it intends to apply for a licence in November once the cooling-off period ends. It estimated that its decision to block Dutch players would cost it £12m per month in EBITDA.
