Insights Archive

January 25, 2022

UK Parliamentary Investigation Attacks 'Activist' Gambling Commission

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Betting and Gaming has said the Gambling Commission is in “urgent need of change” and if left unchallenged will allow an “explosion” of black market activity.

January 24, 2022

Be Very Afraid? Data Protection Regulators Turn Their Attention To Payments

The interplay between the General Data Protection Regulation and the revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) has been an issue for some time, but is increased enforcement action and the rise of data protection activists something that payments institutions should be alarmed about?

January 24, 2022

Singapore Takes Aim At APP Fraud

The Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Association of Banks in Singapore have introduced new measures to bolster the security of digital banking, in view of the recent spate of SMS-phishing scams targeting bank customers.

January 24, 2022

UK Proposes To Extend Cybersecurity Rules To Managed Services

As part of the UK government’s efforts to update the country’s cybersecurity laws, a new proposal would bring managed service providers under the existing cybersecurity regime.

January 24, 2022

U.S. Opens Discussion On CBDC

The U.S. Federal Reserve has published a long-awaited discussion paper on the policy questions related to the issuance of a digital dollar.

January 24, 2022

Armenia Hurtling Towards Online Ad Ban

The Armenian parliament has approved a first reading of amendments that would ban online gambling ads.

January 24, 2022

Seminoles Lose Again In Court – This Time To Las Vegas Sands

It was another rough day in court for the Seminole Tribe on Friday as a Florida judge denied a hearing on the tribe’s claim that Las Vegas Sands is fraudulently collecting signatures in a campaign to legalize commercial casinos in the Sunshine State.

January 24, 2022

German 2022 Unlikely To Be As Horrible As 2021, Analysts Say

A Morgan Stanley report is mildly optimistic about the German gambling scene in 2022, at least compared with a disastrous 2021, but it concludes that much is unclear about the future.

January 24, 2022

New York Online Betting Draws $600m In Wagers In First Nine Days

The first nine days of mobile sports betting in New York proved to be a windfall for operators and for state coffers, according to the first figures released on Friday by the New York State Gaming Commission.

January 21, 2022

No, EU Isn’t Banning Crypto-Mining, But Russia Is

The European Securities and Markets Authority has told VIXIO that comments from one of its vice-chairs in a recent interview about banning the mining of Bitcoin are not the position of the watchdog. However, further afield, Russia’s central bank has said it will introduce such a ban.

January 21, 2022

Fintechs ARE Challenging Big Banks’ Grip, FCA Says

Despite the financial impact of the pandemic, greater competition in retail banking has been able to spearhead choice while lowering prices for consumers and small businesses, the UK’s banking watchdog says.

January 21, 2022

Week In Brief - January 21, 2022

A short roundup of some of the week's payments news you may have missed. This week we look at a U.S. lawsuit relating to fintech charters, a U.S. inquiry to update merger review rules, the National Bank of Greece's efforts to migrate to ISO 20022, Aldi's new till-free store and the most recent crypto hack at Crypto.com.

January 21, 2022

Leave The Soul Of Money To Central Banks

Central banks are best positioned to protect trust, the soul of money, be it fiat or virtual, says Agustín Carstens, general manager of the Bank for International Settlements. Private companies should, therefore, build their products based on a central bank-issued digital currency (CBDC) rather than investing in bigtech stablecoins or decentralised finance (DeFi) platforms.

January 21, 2022

Taiwan Criminalises Online Gamblers, Increases Cash Penalty

Taiwan has closed a legal loophole and made gambling online and via other electronic means a criminal offence, increasing the maximum fine for gamblers to NT$50,000 ($1,800).

January 21, 2022

Ex-Minister Backs Industry Black-Market Warnings

A Conservative former gambling minister and ex-secretary of state has defended the UK industry’s view that too-stringent affordability checks would drive players to offshore websites.

January 21, 2022

How Big A Bite Will New York Take From New Jersey's Sports-Betting Pie?

This month’s blockbuster debut of online sports betting in New York is raising questions about whether neighboring New Jersey is going to lose market share comparable to 2006 when Pennsylvania casinos ravaged brick-and-mortar properties on Atlantic City’s Boardwalk.

January 21, 2022

News In Brief: January 17-January 21, 2022

JKO decides against making bid for Playtech, the Nevada Gaming Commission votes in favour of remote player registration and Pennsylvania's online gambling revenue soars to new heights.

January 20, 2022

Cyprus Gets Crypto Downgrade In MONEYVAL Evaluation

A new report into Cyprus’ anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing progress calls for better compliance with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), with a particular focus on virtual asset service providers.

January 20, 2022

FCA Cancels EU Firms’ Permissions

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has cancelled temporary permissions of four European firms and warned that EU firms must meet the FCA’s standards to be allowed to operate in the UK.

January 20, 2022

Despite Increasing Interest, Request To Pay Remains ’Under The Bonnet’, Study Finds

Although market participants recognise the potential in Request to Pay, a new study finds they have done little to deploy and adopt the overlay service. Yet.

January 20, 2022

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised - Regulators Crack Down On Crypto Advertising

The UK, Spain and Singapore have all unveiled plans for strict rules on crypto advertisements within days of one another, with the Monetary Authority of Singapore proposing an outright ban.