Danish gambling regulator issues fine against advertiser of illegal gambling

Spillemyndigheden says it has fined one individual €13,400.

Denmark.- The Danish gambling regulator, Spillemyndigheden, has issued fines totalling DKK100,000 (€13,400) against one person who it says was advertising illegal gambling. The regulator said the person was advertising unlicensed offerings on two websites.

The names of the person and the websites involved have not been made public, but Spillemyndigheden said it had reported the person to the police. It says the two sites linked to offers from operators that don’t have a Danish licence and which allowed customers to gamble if they were registered with Denmark’s self-exclusion programme ROFUS. 

Spillemyndigheden issued a fine of DKK50,000 for each website.

New slots fees in Denmark 

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Taxation proposed amendments to Denmark’s Gambling Act that would give more powers to Spillemyndigheden. It proposes that the regulator be allowed to secure “necessary information” and to “confidentially exchange information” to tackle matchfixing.

The ministry also suggests that the regulator should have more power to issue sanctions, including injunctions. In the case of gambling operators, it would be able to revoke licences if operators are found to breach sports integrity rules. It would also have more power to process and analyse gambling data, which would involve the use of a unique player ID for the monitoring of match-fixing and money laundering risks.

If approved, the new powers would enter force on July 1, 2024. The Ministry of Taxation says the cost of the new powers could be funded by changes to fees for slot machines under which licensees would be charged based on taxable gambling income rather than per machine. It also suggests the introduction of a new licence for B2B suppliers.

The new fees would apply from January 1, 2025. The changes in slot fees would generate an estimated additional DDK 1.3m in 2024 and DKK 3.5m in 2025, while the B2B licence regime would generate DKK 1.3m in 2024, DKK 2.6m in 2025 rising to 2031 and DKK 2.4m from 2032.