The German Administrative Court in the city of Halle has ruled in favour of the Joint Gambling Authority of the Länder (GGL) and the issued blocking order of a Swiss payments provider.
According to the gambling regulator, the Switzerland-based payment service provider (PSP) in question attempted to meddle with licensed gambling offerings in Germany, while also having a history of being utilised by black market players – prompting the GGL to take swift measures.
Ronald Benter, GGL Board Member, commented on the court’s decision: “This further success in the use of payment blocking shows that country borders do not constitute an obstacle to the enforcement of gambling law.
“We do not tolerate uncooperative behaviour of payment service providers. Companies that do not comply with the applicable laws must expect consequences.”
This is not the only time a court has sided with the GGL this year. Back in July, the Saxony-Anhalt Higher Administrative Court backed a previous legal challenge raised by the regulator regarding a German streamer living abroad, who was using his platform to promote slot games not licensed in Germany.
According to the court’s statement, the streamer posed a risk to their predominantly German audience through the advertisement of products which do not comply with the country’s framework on player protection – in addition to the relatively young age of people who usually follow streaming content.
The GGL has prioritised combating illegal gambling in Germany, relying on the government and the public to support these efforts.
There is a whistleblower online portal in place, where members of the public can submit reports of suspicious gambling offers. More than 1,500 voluntary alerts have been raised since January 2023.