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A fully manned United Arab Emirates (UAE) gaming regulator has named the federation’s lottery monopoly operator while confirming mostly foreign appointments to its own board and management teams.
The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) on Sunday (July 28) named Abu Dhabi-based company The Game LLC as the exclusive operator of the “UAE Lottery”, described in the media release as “the UAE’s first authorised lottery operation”.
Existing lottery operators Mahzooz and Emirates Draw failed in their applications for the lottery licence and are now out of the market, following the GCGRA’s suspension of lottery sales on January 1 this year.
However, some airport-based lotteries and other raffles with substantial cash and luxury prizes, such as Dubai Duty-Free’s Millennium Millionaire and Finest Surprise promotions, remain operational, apparently reflecting jurisdictional limitations for the GCGRA.
GCGRA chairman Jim Murren said the UAE Lottery “launch” is a “pivotal event that not only marks the establishment of a disciplined world-class regulatory framework for lottery activities but also underscores our commitment to nurturing a secure and enriched commercial gaming environment in the UAE”.
But it was not immediately clear when The Game will launch UAE Lottery operations, or what products will be on offer other than what the GCGRA calls “a diverse range of lottery games and other games designed to cater to players’ variety of interests and financial preferences”.
The Game LLC, whose website uses stock photographs and lacks information on prospective operations or board and management teams, is part of Momentum Group, also a UAE entity whose website is similarly generic and lacks essential information.
The Game did not respond to Vixio GamblingCompliance's requests for information on board members, management and shareholders.
The lottery licence announcement is the first major move by the GCGRA to gentrify the UAE’s gaming ecosystem after years of unregulated and underground activity, and coincides with details on the new GCGRA website on staffing and regulation of land-based and internet gaming.
The website confirms that CEO Kevin Mullally has been joined by COO Ahmed Barakat, former managing partner of a commodity trading and consultancy firm, whose LinkedIn account shows he confidentially joined the GCGRA in January.
Other confirmed senior management appointments include auditing and compliance specialist Manuela Croci as chief of supervision for investigations in financial crime prevention, former banking and government lawyer Ourouba El Arab as general counsel, Leina ElBarasi as CFO, and information technology strategist Carlos Gutierrez as chief information officer.
The seven-member board, meanwhile, is an all-male, non-Emirati collection of veteran gaming, corporate and legal identities, with former MGM Resorts International boss Murren joined by Australian real-estate investment heavyweight Chris O’Donnell as vice chairman.
Board members with gaming backgrounds include former Nevada Gaming Control Board chair and state senator Mark Lipparelli, International Masters of Gaming Law co-founder Nicholas Casiello Jr, former UAE-linked Infinity World Development Corp president and COO William Grounds, a former MGM and current PointsBet board member and Murren’s then-colleague at MGM.
Other board members are Italian business lawyer and LCA firm founder Giovanni Lega, and sports law and reputation protection specialist John Kelly, a partner with London-based Harbottle & Lewis.
The GCGRA website also confirms the scope of gaming regulation in the UAE under four categories: lottery, internet gaming, sports wagering and “land-based gaming facilities”, which refers to casino activity without using the term.
“Internet gaming” denotes chance and skill games via the internet or mobile devices, including “bingo, casino games, eSports, fantasy games, peer-to-peer games, skill-based games, sports, and more”, it says.
The GCGRA licensing regime covers five categories: gaming operators, gaming equipment and services suppliers, corporate persons, individual executives, and gaming employees.
The licensing guide includes a step-by-step application process, and specifies that operator licensees “must have a relationship” with a “qualifying domestic entity” – defined as “a UAE company which has substantial business operations in the jurisdiction, and can satisfy other requirements relating to financial standing and operational history”.
The website also features a responsible gambling framework, operator compliance protocols, advertising standards for commercial gaming and technical standards drawn up by Gaming Laboratories International, including online monitoring and control systems.
Mullally said the GCGRA is “steadfast in its commitment to global best practices in consumer protection and regulatory oversight".
“Our regulatory framework is designed to ensure the integrity, fairness, and transparency of commercial gaming activities in the UAE, which include lottery games.
“It also provides consumers with a comprehensive set of tools to monitor and manage their gaming activity. Additionally, we are leveraging new technologies to foster the creation of safe, entertaining games and drive consumer-focused innovation,” he said.
However, questions remain on the exact regulatory powers and policy influence of the GCGRA, as well as on matters of taxation and potential litigation, with legislative instruments on the website limited to documents dating no later than 2022.
