The Netherlands’ gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has slammed another operator with a hefty fine. The recipient of the fine is Betent, which operates in the country under the Betcity brand.

According to the announcement, Betent will have to pay EUR 3 million (roughly $3.27 million) for its violations of the Dutch regulations on Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF).

Betent Failed to Comply

Known as WWFT, the Netherlands’ AML and CTF law requires gambling licensees to monitor their customer’s activity and report suspicious transactions to the Dutch Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). To that end, operators must employ robust know-your-customer (KYC) measures, check their clients’ risk profiles and make sure that their operations do not facilitate money laundering or the financing of terrorism.

As it turns out, Betent’s AML and CTF measures were lacking. While the KSA warned the operator to properly conduct these investigations back in September 2022, Betent failed to properly fulfill its obligations.

The KSA later investigated Betent’s business again, only to find out that the violations persisted. In many cases, the regulator reported, Betent either did not conduct investigations or started them too late. In addition, the company was lax in requesting sources of income from its customers. The KSA also pointed out that, in many cases, Betent did not report unusual transactions to the FIU.

Because of the seriousness of these violations, the KSA opted to hand Betent a significant fine of EUR 3 million.

Jansen: Licensees Were Warned

René Jansen, the chairman of the Kansspelautoriteit, commented on the matter, pointing out that in May 2022, the authority issued a broad warning to licensed gambling companies. Back then, the regulator asked all licensees to get their WWFT affairs in order and warned that incompliant companies risk fines.

We then indicated that if research shows that providers are underperforming in the field of the WWFT, sanctions will be imposed. We are now following up on this. We are now really out of the start-up phase of the market, and that also means that there are no more excuses for some things.

René Jansen, chairman, KSA

Speaking of Jansen, the KSA chair is set to depart from the authority next year. The regulator is already on the lookout for a suitable replacement.

In the meantime, the KSA just unveiled subsidies for six gambling harm prevention research programs.

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The Netherlands’ gambling regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), revealed that it had issued warnings to Betent and Play North Limited over past violations. According to the authority, in 2022, the two companies had breached the anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF)  rules outlined in the Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft).

The KSA explained that a probe showed that the two gambling operators did not do enough to monitor the behavior of their players and did not provide sufficient information to the regulator. Furthermore, both companies failed to properly verify the source of customers’ money, in breach of the Wwft.

As a result, the KSA identified cases where players lost thousands of Euros in short spans of time. The gambling companies’ lack of intervention violated multiple articles of the Wwft.

At the time, the KSA contacted the two companies, asking them to get their monitoring processes in order. Both companies tried to appeal the Kansspelautoriteit’s ruling but to no avail.

Betent, for example, claimed that the Wwft rules only came into force after the Dutch online gaming market went live, which was factually incorrect.

The regulator explained that its decision has now been made public since it is no longer revocable. However, the KSA noted that certain information falling under the confidentiality obligation of the Wwft will not be disclosed.

KSA Desires to Protect Dutch Consumers from Harm

This is notably the first time the KSA has published instructions relating to the Wwft. The regulator explained that it has now made this information public for a number of reasons. 

First of all, publishing this information to the broader public will familiarize the public with KSA’s enforcement action and the regulator’s reasons for it. In addition, other gambling companies can now learn of what type behavior can trigger enforcement action from the KSA. This awareness can prevent other companies from committing similar violations, the KSA believes.

In other news, the KSA just announced its intention to update its responsible gambling policies. The decision comes in the wake of a recent study that highlighted the shortcomings of the current system and demonstrated that operators need to do more to prevent problem gambling.

Earlier this month, the KSA also initiated a crackdown on cashback bonuses, which are forbidden in the Netherlands. Dutch law believes that such offerings can exacerbate harm.

Earlier still, the regulator warned operators over the use of untargeted gambling advertisements, now forbidden in the country.

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The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), a body that regulates gambling in the Netherlands, has reported that the casino operator Betent has breached the local advertising standards. The gaming company’s prohibited actions have earned it a fine, the regulator added.

As reported, Betent’s Betcity.nl online gaming brand promoted gaming content to young adults – people aged 18 to 24. For reference, this is strictly forbidden under Dutch law as it is considered to constitute advertising to a vulnerable target group.

Following a broadcast on Kassa, a local TV program, the KSA launched an investigation and found out that the operator had been violating this rule between October 2021 and March 2022.
In its announcement, the KSA noted:

The brains of young people are still developing. As a result, they are extra susceptible to gambling addiction.

KSA statement

Betent Will Have to Pay a Fine

As it turns out, Betent had been incentivizing people aged 18-24 to play for months. While they weren’t the operator’s only target audience, many such people received promotional messages, inviting them to play with Betcity.nl.

As a result, the KSA slapped Betent, Betcity’s parent company, with a €400,000 (roughly 438,000, current conversion rates) fine.

René Jansen, chairman of the Kansspelautoriteit, commented on the matter, highlighting the importance of protecting young people from gambling harm. He reiterated that the law prohibits casino companies from targeting young adults with their marketing campaigns.

Jansen added that the Kansspelautoriteit will continue to closely monitor the sector and sanction companies that violate these guidelines. He concluded that it is important for gaming companies to respect the rules and protect vulnerable customers from harm and addiction.

The Netherlands Will Ban Untargeted Ads

The current fine comes in the wake of other fines the KSA handed following its investigation. In the past month, three gaming companies were found guilty of breaching the Dutch regulations on advertising and penalized as a result. The fine handed to Betent is the fourth fine handed as a result of this investigation.

At the beginning of this month, Franc Weerwind, the Dutch minister for legal protection, commented on the topic of gambling advertisements and said that the government will proceed with its ban on untargeted ads.

Weerwind explained that, unfortunately, gambling companies rarely can be trusted with self-regulating their marketing activity. Some of them, he noted, have been actively marketing their products even when they have been asked by the KSA to be mindful of their audiences.

The Netherlands plans to ban untargeted ads from July 1 this year.

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