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The Netherlands’ gambling regulator has imposed a fine of €1.05m on Alimaniere Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada for offering gambling illegally.
In a statement published on January 6, the Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) explained Dutch players could gamble on the website time2spin.com in early 2023, which was subsequently blocked.
However, a follow-up investigation in January 2024 revealed that Alimaniere created a new website where players could use their same account.
A cease and desist penalty payment order was issued to the company in February 2024.
According to the KSA, in October and November 2024, Alimaniere snubbed the opportunity to respond to the fine.
The size of the fine was partly determined by the KSA’s investigation revealing “various cases that led to a higher fine than the basic fine of €600,000 being imposed”.
Michel Groothuizen, chairman of the board of the KSA, said illegal gambling providers often take no action to prevent “risky” gambling behaviour.
“For example, there was a lack of age verification, which allowed minors to play, and inactivity costs were charged when someone did not use their account for a while. We therefore take tough action against these types of parties,” Groothuizen said.
In recent months, the KSA has issued several notable fines for offering gambling illegally.
The KSA warned FBC BV for providing illegal games of chance via the website freebitco.in in December 2024, with the company facing a penalty payment of €280,000 per week, up to a maximum of €840,000, if it fails to comply with the regulator's demands.
Offshore operator BetOnline was also fined €1.1m in November 2024.
The Dutch online gambling market is facing many changes this year, with lawmakers set to discuss gambling regulation on March 27 as social concerns surrounding advertising and gambling harms escalated in recent months, following the “evaluation of the Remote Gambling Act” published in November 2024, which proposed “urgent” changes.
