SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Stockholm-listed online gambling group LeoVegas AB has re-established its five-year Swedish gaming licence, having won its appeal against gaming inspectorate Spelinspektionen.
LeoVegas governance had challenged Spelinspektionen’s decision to limit its licence to a two-year operating period, in relation to committing UK advertising violations.
Filing a challenge with the Swedish Administrative Court of Linköping, LeoVegas governance contested the decision by stating that foreign regulatory discrepancies should hold no bearing on an incumbent’s licence conditions.
Contesting Spelinspektionen actions, LeoVegas governance cited that its UK marketing discrepancies related to 2016 and that the operator had implemented all the demands administered by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), fulfiling its licensee terms for the UK market.
“A regulated market has more extensive requirements in relation to responsible gaming with a strong consumer protection focus,” says Vala Karimi, General Counsel LeoVegas. “LeoVegas welcomed the regulation even before its introduction and sees the decision of the Administrative Court as very positive and it gives us an opportunity to continue to focus on compliance.”
In its update, LeoVegas governance underlines its commitment to responsible gambling as a Swedish licensed operator, with the company having launched its LeoSafePlay vertical as a separate business unit with the goal of creating the ‘best conditions for the next generation system, based on machine learning and artificial intelligence’.
Commenting on developments, Gustaf Hagman, Group CEO LeoVegas, said:”After our investments in regulatory compliance and our experiences from regulated markets, this decision is a receipt that we are conducting a professional business. I am proud of our teams that have delivered this in the difficult-navigating environment in which we operate.
“The extended license gives us continued peace of mind in the Swedish market, where we take market shares month by month. We also see that several smaller players are leaving the market at the same time as marketing has diminished. With our eight gaming licenses I look forward to the continued offensive expansion, and this year alone we have gone live in several new markets and we will continue to focus on profitable growth.”
