LCS to appeal against “excessively punitive” KSA fine

The MGA-licensed online gambling operator claims the fine is unjustified.

The Netherlands.- The Malta-based online gambling operator LCS Limited has said that it will “aggressively” appeal against a €2.1m fine issued by the Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA). The fine was issued in relation to the MGA-licensed operator’s Sonofslots.com, which the KSA says was targeting the Netherlands without a local licence.

However, LCS claimed that fine is “excessively punitive” for what it says was a single incident over a year ago. It says that it has taken action to stop Dutch customers from accessing or registering for its online gambling offering.

The operator has also criticised the methodology that the KSA used to decide the amount of the fine, arguing that it was based on inaccurate estimated revenue figures. It has launched an appeal represented by the law firm Blenheim Advocaten.

The KSA has acknowledged that the operator had taken steps to respond to its investigation. However, it says that the fine stands for the previous breach of Dutch law.

KSA chairman René Jansen added: “An order subject to penalty is an often very effective method to immediately stop illegal supply. However, illegal providers who subsequently black out should not think that they have ‘bought off’ their illegal activities: the previously committed violations can also be punished. In addition, we continue to carry out re-checks to verify whether the supply has actually been and will continue to be discontinued.”

In its latest report, the KSA noted that the growth of the Netherlands’ regulated online market, which opened in October 2021, appeared to be levelling off. The number of active licences to operate on the market has grown from an initial 10 on its launch to 27, following the launch of LeoVegas.