The Dutch gaming regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has nailed the Maltese casino company Gammix Ltd. with a record fine of €19.6 million (£16.8 million/$21.2 million). It alleges it violated the Dutch Gaming Act by offering games without a license in the Netherlands, iGaming Business reported March 1.
According to iGB, Gammix collects €302.7 million from Dutch customers. The fine is 6.5 percent of that turnover.
This is the largest fine KSA has ever assessed and follows an order by the regulator in June 2022 that Gammix exit the market or be fined. Then, in March 2023 KSA ordered the company to pay a €4.4 million penalty for allegedly disregarding the previous orders.
The fine was written in December and published last week.
Previously the highest fine levied by KSA was €12 million ($13 million), against N1 Interactive Ltd.
KSA Chairman Rene Jensen declared, “Dutch players must be protected, therefore we are taking a strong stance against illegal gambling offerings.”
Gammix called the fine “outrageous and unsubstantiated” and “unnecessarily heavy-handed” and “an absolute joke.” It also claims to have blocks in place to keep Dutch residents from playing on its sites.
In announcing the fine, the regulator commented that Gammix had taken no measures to ban players from the Netherlands—something the company denies. It continues to offer illegal casino games on websites such as betoriginal.com and nordslot.com, available to Dutch residents through a Netherlands ISP. KSA says one can create an account using a Dutch postal address and phone number and that it has done so itself making €20 deposits from banks based in the Netherlands.
It also continues to take accounts from the Netherlands and does not inform customers that residents of that country are not allowed to have accounts.
One of the aggravating factors in the large fine was that Gammix charges customers “inactivity” fees and doesn’t protect minors by verifying the ages of customers.
In its ruling the KSA noted that it has monitored the Maltese firm’s websites throughout 2022 and found that they continued to be available to Dutch citizens. Gammix has argued that there is no cause to issue a fine. It has also accused the regulator of being “careless” in its report.
The regulator counters that the company should be aware of Dutch laws against foreign online operators accepting Dutch customers without a Dutch license.
Gammix claims that the accounts KSA used to gain entry to its sites were created in Luxembourg using a credit card to make deposits. This violates its terms and conditions by providing false information when signing up, it says.
Gammix Ltd. Director Phil Pearson has promised to fight the fine and has filed an objection. He said he is aiming for “an apology and retraction.”
He commented, “The KSA has imposed upon our company a penalty that is both outrageous and unsubstantiated.” He added, “Now that we are able to talk openly about the case, we can confirm that we are fighting on all fronts as, to us, this is an extraordinary and unnecessarily heavy-handed action from a regulator that many already regarded as unapproachable.”
Pearson added that the fines were based on “falsified data, extreme inaccuracy and highly suspect mathematics.” Gammix asserts the fines were calculated using a web-traffic aggregation service that shows an inaccurate turnover.
Pearson claims to have contacted KSA to tell them of its blocks for Dutch residents and asked for materials pertinent to the investigation so it could remain in compliance. “[A] request they appeared to ignore.”
Critics of KSA—such as the operator Videoslots, the recipient of a €9.87 million fine last year—have protested against its “Mystery Shopper” method of investigation
Gammix operates 21 online casinos.
