Finland reduces gambling loss limits due to Covid-19

Finland will cut monthly and daily gambling loss limits to €500 due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.

Finland.- The Finnish Ministry of the Interior will cut monthly and daily gambling loss limits from May 1 due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.

The ministry has issued a decree reducing monthly and daily loss limits for online casinos games offered by state operator Veikkaus as a result of the current “exceptional circumstances”. 

The monthly loss limit for “fast-paced online games” will be reduced from €2,000 to €500, while the maximum daily loss per player has been halved from €1,000 to €500.

This means that a player would be unable to gamble for the rest of the month should they lose the maximum in a day.

The decree will come into effect on May 1 and last until September 30. It applies to all online slots, online bingo, instant win games and table games, excluding poker, operated by state monopoly Veikkaus.

Veikkaus has also announced that raffle draws will be suspended from May 4 until further notice.

Raffle tickets, which can also be awarded as a prize in instant win games, will continue to be sold, with the operator looking to concentrate on continuing to offer its core lottery products during the period withdraws to be held once the suspension is lifted.

The temporary loss limits and suspension of raffle draws are likely to add to the existing hit to the Finnish monopoly’s revenues, caused by Covid-19.

Land-based casinos and gaming halls in the Scandinavian country have been shut since March 13. Veikkaus has seen revenue decline by 40 per cent and little migration of customers online.

Veikkaus COO, Nora Vähävirta said: “It seems that Gaming has not moved to the internet during the Pandemic months of March and April when the big picture is considered. 

“During that period, the physical channel fell ca. 65 million (euros) short of the normal situation, whereas the digital channel grew by a million more than had been predicted.

“In other words, it seems that those who have played physical slots games have not moved to the internet to a significant degree during the review period.”

Veikkaus’ online service has attracted an average of 3,000 new customers per week during the pandemic. At the beginning of the year, it was already averaging 2,000 on average.