Latest Gambling News: Philippines Mulls Mandatory Listing Of Online Gambling Companies, and more

Catch up on some of the stories our gambling compliance analysts have covered lately, and stay up-to-date on the latest news.

Philippines Mulls Mandatory Listing Of Online Gambling Companies

In an apparent global first, the Philippine government is considering compulsory stock market listings for online gambling companies to compel greater transparency in operations and ownership.

Forcing domestic-facing online gambling companies to list on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) and paying 10 percent more in tax are two of a number of tough reforms on the table for the online gambling sector, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto told Philippine media on Thursday (July 17).

Recto said the executive branch is “looking at” imposing listing requirements to force corporate disclosures from companies long reluctant to open their books to government and public scrutiny.

“We can force them to list so that we know who the people behind it are,” Recto said. “It becomes more transparent.”

A mandatory listing for online gambling companies regardless of size would skew the market in favour of larger operators and put formidable pressure on smaller companies to redirect resources to compliance issues, potentially triggering a new migration of online gambling companies away from the Philippines. It would also resemble and complement an initiative by the Philippine central bank to slap much tighter controls and transparency on the all-important payments sector, a crucial conduit for Philippine online gambling companies legal and illegal alike.

UK Gambling Commission Releases Account Closure Data To Bolster Transparency

The UK Gambling Commission wants to improve transparency around account restrictions, following its data request to some of the largest online betting providers earlier this year, revealing 4.31 percent of accounts are restricted in some form.

The UK gambling regulators' data published in a blog post by CEO Andrew Rhodes on July 23, also revealed 2.68 percent of accounts are subject to a stake factor restriction.

The second most common form of restriction was account closures, with 2.23 percent of accounts being closed for commercial reasons.

Additionally, 25.42 percent of all customers are in profit compared to 46.78 percent of restricted customers.

Rhodes acknowledged that the Commission doesn't have the power to control how operators handle their commercial liabilities.

However, he said “we do have a statutory responsibility to ensure that gambling is conducted in a fair and open manner, to understand potential drivers of illegal gambling and to ensure that industry practices are not having an adverse impact on the effectiveness of regulation. That is why as an evidence-led regulator we have undertaken this piece of work".

Rhodes also believes that the regulator has to better understand if commercial restrictions are pushing players to the black market or encouraging them to create multiple accounts, undermining controls designed to prevent crime and protect consumers.

GLI Set For Acquisition By Avalon Buyer Ltd

Avalon Buyer Ltd., a UK-listed firm controlled by private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, is set to acquire a controlling stake in Gaming Laboratories International (GLI), according to filings in Austria and Malta.

The filing with the Austrian Financial Competition Authority lists a July 31 deadline for written comments from any company “whose legal or economic interests are affected by the merger”.

A filing with the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority was updated on July 11, and gave only a seven-day comment period, which has since passed.

Both filings were originally submitted on July 3. No financial terms were disclosed in either filing.

The competition authorities in Austria and Malta are currently reviewing the proposed acquisition. Avalon intends to acquire sole control of Lakewood, New Jersey-based GLI as well as affiliates Worldwide Laboratories and Kobetron, with all three companies involved in testing, inspection and certification services for the gaming industry.

Trump Gaming Tax Debate Arrives In Las Vegas

The U.S. House Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to hold a “field hearing” on Friday (July 25) in Las Vegas to discuss President Donald Trump’s new tax law.

The new law includes a provision allowing gamblers to deduct only 90 percent of their losses from taxable winnings. Players are currently allowed to subtract 100 percent of losses from their gains before paying taxes.

The field hearing will be held at YESCO, a Las Vegas-based business that manufacturers custom signs and displays for casinos, and only invited guests will be allowed to testify, according to a committee press release.

Others can submit written testimony to the committee.

Representative Dina Titus, a Democrat from Nevada, has been lobbying for support for her bill, H.R. 4304 or the FAIR BET Act, which would restore the standard tax deduction for gambling losses. The bill has been referred to Ways and Means, but the committee has yet to schedule a hearing on the measure.

Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez-Masto has introduced S-2230 by unanimous consent in the Senate, but Republican Senator Todd Young, of Indiana, was in opposition killing the effort. Masto’s bill has yet to be referred to a Senate committee.

California Attorney General To Enforce DFS Opinion

California Attorney General Rob Bonta said he will go after paid daily fantasy sports (DFS) that continue to operate in the state following the release of a legal opinion earlier this month declaring the contests to be illegal.

“The next step is our enforcement, and laws are meant to be enforced,” Bonta told KCRA TV in Sacramento.

During a news conference late Monday (July 21), Bonta was asked why he decided to release the legal opinion after the state’s last two attorney generals, Xavier Becerra and Kamala Harris, declined to.

Bonta said he received a formal request specifically for the legal opinion.

“It’s our duty, not our discretion, but when we are mandated, we shall respond and provide an opinion as appropriately requested under the law,” Bonta said.

Currently, Underdog, PrizePicks, FanDuel, and DraftKings all offer real-money DFS in California.

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