Archived Insights

Two of Africa’s largest telcos are set to partner with Mastercard on new initiatives to improve the continent’s cross-border payment options. Meanwhile, Mastercard is set to invest directly in Africa’s fintech sector.

The Consumer Federation of Kenya has accused the Betting Control and Licensing Board of “continuously” failing to protect consumers from predatory advertising practices by its licensees.

In recent years, some U.S. and European gaming regulators have required licensees to implement mandatory player tracking or customer interactions to identify potentially problematic online gambling and intervene to reduce the risk of harm.

Sports betting in Florida is suspended indefinitely following a legal appeal this week, and if the case reaches the U.S. Supreme Court, the ruling could affect Indian gaming much like a May 2018 decision galvanized the commercial gambling industry.

Ukraine has reintroduced an 18 percent tax rate on gross gaming revenue of online casinos previously abolished under martial law.

The Central Bank of Ecuador has issued the country’s first fintech regulations, pursuant to the country’s Fintech Law that was passed at the end of 2022.

As more Australian buy now, pay later (BNPL) companies run into trouble down under, major retailers in the UK and the US are positioning themselves to take advantage of a weakened playing field.

​​​​​​​888 Holdings has agreed to pay £2.9m to a Gibraltar fund in a settlement in lieu of a fine over shortcomings in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing policies in dot.com markets in the Middle East.

Pick'em-style fantasy sports games, which critics say cross the line into sports betting, are attracting increasing scrutiny from regulators and are set to be prohibited by regulations in at least two major markets, but contest operators say they welcome the opportunity to make their case to policymakers.

The Gambling Commission has threatened to name and shame organisations it believes are misusing problem gambling data, in particular those who use statistics to underplay the level of gambling harm in the UK.

The Norwegian Gambling Authority has sent bet365 and ComeOn notices to stop offering online gambling to Norwegians, as cases against Kindred Group and Betsson continue.

It looked like it was all over last year for the U.S. election betting market when the federal government ordered a company taking wagers on political races to close its business for good by a deadline of February 15, 2023.

There is a “significant link” between higher rates of gambling harm and worsening mental health, according to a new study published by UK charity GambleAware.

Two US senators have reintroduced a bipartisan bill that would give the federal government oversight of certain crypto transactions worth $10,000 or more.

On June 28, 2023, the European Commission introduced the digital euro package. This package consists of several proposed regulations aimed at making the digital euro legal tender and provides a framework for its implementation. This regulatory analysis will examine this digital euro package. It will review the legislative history and background to the digital euro and provide an outline of the legislative proposal by the European Commission. Finally, it will examine the potential commercial and regulatory implications on the payments and crypto industries.

In June 2023, the EU released the revised payments package through three proposals: a proposal for a directive on payment services and electronic money services (PSD3); a proposal for a regulation on payment services (PSR); and a proposal for a regulation on a framework for financial data access (FDA). This regulatory analysis takes a look into the problems identified, the new revisions being introduced and the new directions being taken as part of the package.

Argentine lawmakers are working on reforming the country's credit card regulations but the chances of the bill becoming law are getting slimmer by the day as the country is heading to an election later this year.

Germany’s finance minister has said that he wants "to follow the money", but can the country get its policy right to move on from a second-rate Financial Action Task Force (FATF) assessment and the Wirecard scandal?

State auditors have found the Oregon Racing Commission struggles with delays in filling openings for commissioners, weak oversight and transparency of funds to support the horseracing industry, and limited documentation of its reviews of historical horseracing machines.

An application window for Brazil’s first state-level sports-betting licences closed on Friday, with Rio de Janeiro testing the limits of Brazilian lottery laws by enabling approved operators to accept bets from players across the country.

India’s parliament has rammed through legislation imposing a flat 28 percent goods and services tax (GST) on online gaming deposits, land-based casinos, horseracing and lotteries, as well as on foreign-based operations.