Each week, SBC CIS editors look back at the events of the previous week to highlight the most interesting and resonant ones for you.
Albania lifts the ban on sports betting, Belgian regulator limits the amount of the players’ weekly deposits (but not really), iGaming companies listed among Top-5 of the NBA’s most lucrative sponsors, Betsson reports growth and new acquisitions, FAVBET aims to add crypto for the users of their platform, reiterates their support for the Ukrainian sports, and 3 Oaks Gaming to offer their gaming portfolio for the Slot City players.
Read about these news in detail in our digest below.
On January 1, 2023 Albania will reintroduce legal sports betting, an activity that in 2018 was banned along with casinos and online gambling. The ban, however, led to the flourishing of illegal gambling.
The decision to “unban” sports betting was made by the country’s authorities in the face of a budget deficit. The Albanian government expects the legalization of sports betting to bring in around 17 million Euros in annual tax revenue. All proceeds will be directed to sports, culture and youth initiatives in the country.
Belgian gambling regulator aims to limit the amount of players’ weekly deposits to 200 Euros. This represents more than half of what was allowed previously (€500 limit).
The new rule will be applied by default for all players, but it will be possible to increase the limit to €500 per week in a case by case manner.
To do that, players will need to contact their gambling operator. The operator will then contact the regulator, who in turn will request the player’s data from the Belgian National Bank. If there are no suspicious points in the client’s credit history, the regulator will allow the operator to increase the player’s deposit limit. The regulator claims that the entire procedure should take no more than three days.
The SportingPedia has published the results of their research of the NBA’s most lucrative sponsorship arrangements ahead of the new 2022/2023 season’s launch.
Tech companies are at the top of the NBA sponsors list this season with Microsoft, Oculus, Sony, LegalZoom, Google Pixel, and Coinbase being the most prominent. Tech sponsorships make up 28% of the entire sponsorship money pool.
iGaming companies are in fourth place with 9% share of the entire sponsorship pool. For the 2022/2023 season the list of the top iGaming sponsors in the NBA include major US operators such as FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Caesars Sports.
Betsson announced its strong quarterly results. According to the company’s report, the group’s income amounted to 200 million Euros, up 18% compared to the same period in 2021.
The report cites growth in Central and Eastern Europe as well as the Baltics (Estonia and Lithuania) as the main difference makers. Adding local mass-market brands Big Bola Mexico and ColBet Colombia to its South American online portfolio boosted the overall performance.
Betsson’s strategic moves has allowed the company to overcome the adverse factors in Western Europe, where sales fell by 29%.
Building on top of the international success, Betsson has recently acquired an 80% stake in KickerTech Limited, a Vilnius-based team of 50 professionals that develop state-of-the-art odds models, trading technologies and betting features. The acquisition supports Betsson’s B2B growth strategy by expanding its customer base and providing additional scalable technology, while also strengthening the existing portfolio of betting operators with advanced trading and simulation tools.
Users of the FAVBET platform, a leading entertainment service provider, will soon be able to offer their players an ability to top up balance with seven of the most popular cryptocurrencies.
The company notes that as soon as the amendments to the Ukrainian Tax Code come into force and the regulatory framework governing the taxation and processing of virtual assets is approved, their clients will finally be able to use new payment instruments.
In addition to the success in utilizing the alternative financial instruments, FAVBET continues to support Ukrainian football amidst the unjust and unprovoked russian invasion.
Abandoned stadiums, occupied home arenas, empty fan sectors and the sound of air-raid sirens instead of the referees’ whistles — a harsh reality that Ukrainian sport has to deal with since February of 2022.
Denis Akimov, Head of Sports Marketing at FAVBET told SBC CIS that in 2022, some of their sponsorship plans had to be adjusted as the company reoriented towards ensuring the safety of their employees, their financial support, and providing assistance to the Ukrainian military. Now, FAVBET are back to their usual work rhythm, revitalizing their sports partnerships to remain current ahead of the FIFA World Cup.
3 Oaks Gaming has signed a long-term content integration agreement with Slots City, a new iGaming operator on the European scene.
The agreement will unlock a wide range of slot games for the players of this Ukrainian online casino. In addition to the portfolio of games, the operator will also get access to 3 Oaks’ marketing, gamification and promotional tools designed to increase customer engagement and retention.
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