Romanian gambling regulator closes self-exclusion loophole
The ONJN has told operators to apply a “single-account principle” on gambling self-exclusion.
Romania.- The troubled Romanian gambling regulator appears to be putting its house in order. The ONJN has issued an order for gambling operators to apply as a “single account principle” for self-exclusion, meaning that self-exclusion requests automatically apply across all platforms.
The clarification closes a loophole that allowed players who had self-excluded with one operator to switch to another and continue to gamble. It brings the Romanian self-exclusion system in line with most of those in Europe, which allow players to exclude from all operators with a single request, avoiding the need for a player to self-exclude separately from each individual platform.
The decision could have repercussions for operators who interpreted self-exclusion requests as being platform-specific since it raises the possibility that customers could try to claim compensation if they self-excluded on one platform but later incurred losses through gambling on another that failed to implement cross-platform exclusion. Some operators have already made refunds due to legal action.
The ONJN launched Romania’s gambling self-exclusion platform in 2020. The corresponding legislation, GD no. 111/2016, Art. 130 outlines a single-account approach, but it seems there was some confusion about whether that applies across operators or only to different platforms under the same licence.
The regulator has now told operators to update their terms and conditions, responsible gambling policies, and internal compliance procedures accordingly. It warns that it could issue fines and possible licence revocation for further breaches.
The move comes as the ONJN faces calls for answers after a damning audit report found serious irregularities, including a lack of supervision of authorisation fees and gambling tax. It was reported that the ONJN failed to detect potential discrepancies in return-to-player (RTP) levels that may have caused the state to lose between 3.3 and 4.3bn lei (€630m to €900m) in gambling tax revenues.
The audit by the Court of Accounts (CCR) found that the regulator had never verified financial data submitted by gambling companies, failed to verify gambling licence fees and had not issued penalties when required.
The ONJN’s president, Gheorghe-Gabriel Gheorghe, last week rejected a summons to appear before a parliamentary hearing of the IT Committee to provide an explanation, reportedly questioning the USR Party’s authority to summon a regulatory agency.
He claimed that the IT Committee, which is chaired by USR senator Ciprian Rus, had failed to understand the complexity of the CCR’s findings and said that the regulator had already taken measures to rectify its failings. He asked Parliament to reschedule the hearing and said he would detail the measures the regulator had taken.
In the meantime, the USR has proposed replacing the ONJN’s supervision of the gambling sector with the national tax agency ANAF for land-based gambling and the National Bank for online gambling. It’s also proposed that gambling spend be limited to 10 per cent of players’ monthly income for both online and land-based activity.
