SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The Belgian Public Prosecution Office (PPO) has seized €600,000 of French igaming operator – Betclic funds. The PPO claim the operator had directly broken Belgium law and policy regarding igaming wagering and transactions.
The PPO claim that they are acting under Belgium financial law, which allows them to directly confiscate funds associated with Belgium non regulated igaming operators. This is the first time the PPO, have confiscated funds as punishment against unregulated igaming in the region. Till now, The Belgian Gaming Commission (BGC) have punished igaming operators by blacklisting operators and blocking access to their URL’s from Belgian IP’s.
The BGC has the government authorization to fine operators that do not comply with Belgian gaming standards up to €600,000. Further prosecution by the BGC could see Betclic board members facing prison sentences, and fines for the Belgian customers who have wagered on the operators products.
Betclic have publically challenged the legitimacy of the current Belgian Gaming Commission, stating it is in violation of European Union trade practices. Betclic have not applied for a Belgian igaming license.
