SBC CIS Editorial Team is happy to congratulate Orthodox Christians on Easter, one of their biggest holidays in the year. We wish you all incredible success in your business, sky-high engagement levels and revenue streams that never dry up!
And now back to our traditional quick recap of the gambling industry events, news, regulations and partnerships that happened last week.
SBC announced the list of nominees for the prestigious CasinoBeats Game Developer Awards, which honors the studios and game development teams that have created the most successful games in the industry. The awards ceremony will take place during the CasinoBeats Summit and will take place at the InterContinental Hotel on May 25th. The full shortlist of nominations can be viewed on the official SBC website.
SBC Summit Latinoamérica will take place from October 31 to November 2, the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel in Miami hosting the leading gambling and sports betting operators in Latin America. The event will bring together some of the industry’s most respected leaders and senior decision makers with extensive experience of working on the region’s markets. More than 1,500 delegates are expected to attend, including affiliates, sports betting providers, game developers, payment service providers, marketing companies and the media.
European regulators, including de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) in the Netherlands, l’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) in France, SZTFH in Hungary and Spelinspektionen in Sweden, backed the Gaming Regulators European Forum (GREF) joint statement on illegal gambling. In a statement, the European authorities said they are committed to providing a high level of consumer protection by promoting a safer gaming environment.
In Estonia, the new government wants to ban gambling and betting advertising and take steps to help people with gambling addiction. The new coalition also wants to strengthen counseling for gambling addiction and offer help to people who find themselves in a difficult situation due to the addiction.
Anton Kuchukhidze, Head of the Ukrainian Gambling Council, spoke about the facts and statistics that are the best response to provocations and misinformation. «The real contribution of the industry to the domestic economy is completely ignored. Similarly, critics fail to mention the fact that the licensed gambling operators have voluntarily funded the army and supported the population since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Thanks to the great work of the team, the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries paid more than UAH 522 million to the state budget in the first quarter of 2023. This is 62% more than the planned amount of UAH 322 million. According to the plan for 2023, a total of UAH 1,596 million in revenue from gambling licenses should go to the state budget. This means that 34.5% of this amount has already been received in the first three months of this year», — noted the UGC Head.
The National Bank of Kyrgyzstan proposed to allow online casinos to accept payments in foreign currency. A corresponding draft resolution of the financial regulator has been submitted for public discussion. The National Bank noted that all bank card payments within the country are now made in Kyrgyz soms. This may cause problems. According to the law, only foreigners are allowed to play at Kyrgyz casinos.
Premier League clubs have collectively agreed to remove gambling advertising from the front of their shirts, starting from the 2026-27 season. The league said the clubs took this step voluntarily to reduce sports betting and casino advertising. Currently 8 Premier League clubs wear the logos of the gambling companies on their shirts: Bournemouth, Everton, Leeds, Southampton, West Ham, Fulham, Newcastle and Brentford.
Sportradar received the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) Kitemark certification for the second time. The Kitemark Data Standards set standards and guidelines for data collection to protect sports integrity from betting fraud. IBIA has developed Kitemark to provide maximum transparency and accuracy in the sports data collection and distribution chain.
Ismail Vali, Founder and CEO of Yield Sec, talked about the illegal gambling market, regulatory and government interference, as well as how Yield Sec can make the gambling sector a safer environment. Listen to Mr. Vali in the latest episode of Martin Lycka’s Safe Bet Show podcast.
Endorphina announced partnership with Sazka.cz, one of the most beloved brands in the Czech gaming market. This partnership marks the provider’s entry into the Czech market, and Endorphina says it can’t wait to introduce its games to Sazka.cz players. Popular games from the provider, such as Lucky Streak 3 and Hell Hot 100, will increase the performance of Sazka Casino and provide players with an unforgettable gaming experience.
SOFTSWISS will integrate MetaMask’s cryptocurrency wallet into their online casino platform. The integration aims to simplify the process of making a deposit in online games. Staking from the MetaMask wallet does not require multiple steps, like scanning QR codes, switching between multiple screens, or copying information.
BETER, a data and content provider for sports- and eSports betting, parted ways with well-known sports technology company Sportradar. This marked the end of a three-year partnership in which Sportradar distributed popular BETER basketball, table tennis and eSports products to operators through its platform. Content from BETER will continue to be available through Sportradar until the end of May, 2023.
BETER Live announced that Edvardas Sadovskis joined the company as Chief Product Officer. With over 10 years of experience and a passion for sports and gambling, Edvardas will bring a wealth of knowledge and skills to this position. With the arrival of Edwardas, BETER Live intends to continue its phenomenal growth trajectory by offering partners and players a product of superior quality.
Swintt gaming studio signed an agreement with AdmiralBet. With this deal, the studio’s games will appear in the operator’s lobby. The deal will also favor Swintt’s debut in Serbia. The partnership with AdmiralBet will take them to the next level in the Eastern Europe region.
CT Interactive expanded its operations in Czechia with its latest Grandwin agreement. Games from CT Interactive are already available on the Czech platform, which is 50% owned by NOVOMATIC. The partnership between the global provider and the operator was signed a few days ago.
Relum and Spinomenal, two iGaming companies that have demonstrated innovative and dynamic growth in the areas of B2B API solutions and game development, entered into a major deal. The Relum team combines years of Digitain Group’s experience with a commitment to the continuous development of its partners. Its attractive promotional tools are being regularly updated to keep up with all market trends.
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