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The former operator of Unibet must repay a gambler’s grey-market losses in the Netherlands, as momentum continues to build behind player claims in the country.
A ruling in the Hague District Court published on Wednesday (March 12) ordered Trannel International to repay €271,301 to a Dutch gambler.
The judge ruled that because Unibet did not have a licence at the time when the gambling losses were accrued, the “gambling agreement is null and void” and the player should be returned every euro lost during the grey-market period.
The finding echoes similar results in Austria, Germany and previously in the Netherlands.
Unibet operator Kindred was acquired by French lottery giant FDJ in October 2024.
According to recent statements given to various media outlets, Unibet and Trannel are now entirely separate entities, with Kindred having sold the latter to an unnamed company.
FDJ United did not respond to questions from Vixio about which company Trannel was sold to.
In the meantime, Trannel itself seems to have entirely vanished as a going concern.
Trannel Interactive no longer appears on the list of companies licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority. However, data from the Internet Archive reveals that the URL which previously led to Trannel’s authorisation is still live.
As recently as November 10, 2024, the webpage still listed Trannel as a licensed entity, but included a new registered address and had changed its contact email from kindredplc.com (which had been in place until at least August 7) to boabet.com.
That same URL now links to a page that names Risepoint Limited as the licensed entity, again with a boabet.com contact email.
Boabet.com is a brand owned by Silverspin Limited, a company that itself spun off from US-headquartered gambling giant Bally’s last year.
Silverspin bills itself as the operator of Japan-facing bingo platform Vera & John, as well as Yuugado, InterCasino, CasinoSecret and Boabet.
On November 4, 2024, poker players on the Unibet platform were directed to a blog post indicating that the company was withdrawing from several markets, including Hungary and Poland.
Players not on a short list of approved markets, including the UK and the Netherlands, would be transferred to Boabet.com, the post said.
Wednesday’s Dutch ruling orders Trannel to immediately pay the €271,301 it owes the unnamed gambler, even if it decides to appeal.
However, it is possible that the new owners of Trannel could yet decide to retreat to the safety of Malta and its Bill 55 protections.
Amendments to Malta’s gambling act brought about by the bill are being used to fend off court judgments from other EU nations that seek player refunds from companies headquartered on the island.
Two cases from Malta were thrown out by a Maltese judge last week.
The European Commission says it is still investigating Bill 55, despite near silence from commissioners since the inquiry was opened in 2023.
Having first gathered momentum in Austria and then neighbouring Germany, crusading lawyer Benzi Loonstein, who won Wednesday’s case, has had some success bringing similar cases to the Netherlands.
Loonstein has promised a wave of cases are incoming and at least one other firm is preparing a package of claims in the Netherlands.
