Gambling regulator hits illegal casino with record €37m fine

The Dutch gambling regulator KSA has issued a record fine of €37 million on a company for running a dozen unlicensed online casinos.

EOD Code SRL, which says it is registered in Costa Rica, offered games to players in the Netherlands through sites including Instantcasino and Skyhills without a Dutch licence, KSA said on Thursday.

KSA inspectors were able to register and gamble on the sites with no measures in place to stop people in the Netherlands using them. Several of the sites had no visible age checks and accepted cryptocurrency and other anonymous payment methods.

The investigation began with Instantcasino and later uncovered 11 more sites run by the same company. The KSA based the fine on an estimate of the company’s Dutch revenue.

Online gambling was legalised in October 2021, with the government arguing a regulated market would draw players away from illegal sites. But the KSA estimated last year that more money goes to unlicensed sites than to legal ones.

In August, radio station BNR found that illegal operators were targeting Facebook and Instagram ads at people on Cruks, the national register that bars them from gambling. The cabinet set out plans in June to ban online gambling advertising and bonuses.

If you are concerned about your own or someone else’s use of alcohol, drugs, or gambling, the Jellinek addiction helpline can be reached on 088 505 1220 or at jellinek.nl. The line is staffed in Dutch and English on weekdays, 1pm to 5pm.