SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The leadership of ONJN, the National Office for Gambling of Romania, has been summoned to Parliament to explain “serious failings and irregularities” brought to light by an audit conducted by the Court of Accounts (CCR).
The demand has been filed by Minister Diana Stoica, the Deputy of the Romania Union Party (USR), who stated that ONJN’s leadership must explain its scandalous failings before an IT Committee.
Last week, the CCR published its audit of ONJN for the period 2019 to 2023, uncovering severe discrepancies in the auditing of gambling licences and regulatory oversight of Romania’s gambling sector.
The CCR claims to have identified potential tax liabilities of between 3.3 billion and 4.3 billion lei (€630m to €900m) due to ONJN’s extreme negligence in auditing gambling licences.
The report further claimed that, during the period 2019 to 2023, ONJN conducted minimal verification of authorisation fees, leading to discrepancies in unpaid taxes totalling 79 million lei (€16m).
The CCR submitted its damning audit to the government, stating that ONJN’s negligence was serious enough to warrant a criminal investigation.
ONJN must explain complicity in tax failings
USR Deputy Diana Stoica called the situation “scandalous,” demanding that ONJN provide clear answers and urgent corrective measures.
“The heads of ONJN facilitated a huge fraud and enabled the destruction of lives. While in 2023 alone, Romanians spent 12.5 billion lei on online gambling, ONJN failed to fulfil its basic legal duties,” Stoica stated.
Stoica emphasised that Parliament must ensure ONJN is held accountable and implement stronger regulatory measures to prevent further failings.
USR Senator Ciprian Rus, who chairs Romania’s IT Committee, endorsed the call for a direct investigation, stating:
“The passive attitude and tacit complicity of ONJN leadership demonstrate either gross incompetence or systemic corruption. We demand clear answers and firm commitments to ensure such illegalities will not be repeated.”
Wider fallout for Romanian Gambling
The CCR’s audit also found that ONJN had failed in its primary duty of monitoring and controlling online gambling operators. Since its establishment, the institution has never carried out proper supervision, including verifying financial data provided by gambling companies.
With Romania’s gambling sector growing rapidly, these revelations have intensified scrutiny on ONJN’s operations.
ONJN is currently led by Gheorghe-Gabriel Gheorghe, who serves as the fifth president of the national gambling office since 2018.
Between 2019 and 2023, Romania overhauled its gambling tax regime, introducing new licence fees, a 2% monthly supervision fee, vice taxes, and new thresholds on gambling revenue taxes.
Parliament is expected to review possible legislative measures, including those previously proposed by USR, to tighten regulations and prevent further failings in the oversight of the gambling industry.
As pressure mounts, the Romanian government faces increasing demands to act decisively in tackling corruption and mismanagement within the gambling sector.
