Despite remaining a state-owned company with a monopoly status, Veikkaus supports opening Finland’s online gambling market to commercial companies operating under the appropriate licences. According to Veikkaus, the transition to a licensing model should strengthen player protection and help combat the illegal market, which has grown significantly in recent years.
From 1 July next year, Finland plans to move from a monopoly system to a licensing-based regulatory model for online gambling. In June, the National Police Board of Finland (Poliisi) reported that the department responsible for gambling regulation had already received 50 licence applications. This highlights the strong interest among operators in entering the Finnish market.
Olli Sarekoski, CEO of Veikkaus, commented on the upcoming market transformation. According to him, more than 1,500 gambling companies are currently targeting Finnish players, while more than half of the total gambling volume in 2024 came from operators outside the regulated market.
“The key point is the channelisation rate. A lot of gaming is outside the official channels. What is the point of the monopoly if this is the case?”
Veikkaus will retain its monopoly over lotteries and land-based gambling, while Finland’s online gambling market will open to licensed commercial operators next year.
At the same time, the company is preparing to operate in the new competitive environment. Veikkaus has joined the industry organisation Gambling Industry Association Finland (Rahapeliala ry) and has also made changes to its data and artificial intelligence teams, as well as its finance division. These measures are aimed at “strengthening the company’s position in an increasingly competitive environment”.
The changes come against the backdrop of Veikkaus’ latest financial results. In the first half of the year, the company generated €151.6m ($175.9m) in gross gaming revenue (GGR) from online casino and betting. In the same period of 2025, the figure stood at €146.5m ($169.9m).
Ultimately, Veikkaus supports the transition to a licensing system that should strengthen player protection and help combat illegal operators.
Sarekoski said: “What is the role of the monopoly if it’s no longer channelling and functioning as a tool in preventing gaming harms?
“From our point of view, this unfair competition was making it mission impossible. The system was not able to protect itself, that was very clear, and it’s better to have fair competition.”
Any commercial operator entering the Finnish iGaming market in 2027 will face an uphill battle of trying to unseat Veikkaus and the market share it has gained as a monopoly in the country.
In its H1 2026 results, the state-owned operator currently has 2.7 million registered customers, so it is ready for the newly competitive market ahead.
Sarekoski added: “It’s easier to create very tight regulations, but it’s very demanding to keep the channelling rate up. When it comes to gaming harms, when gaming is taking place on unofficial sites, it’s always much more complicated to take care of responsible gaming.
“That’s what we are putting a lot of pressure on. We should have competition, and fair competition. The competition should not be taking the highest risk with the gaming harms, it should be the customer experience.”
Don’t forget to subscribe to our Telegram channel!
