The parliament of Malta has amended the national Gaming Act to strengthen the authority of the Maltese Gaming Authority (MGA) to enforce compliance and regulations.
Final approval is pending. If approved, it will be put into force for online operators by July 2018, followed by brick and mortar operations in January 2019.
The main thrust of the new legislation is to strengthen the industry’s anti-money laundering regulations and further protect consumers. It increases MGA’s supervisory role, and adds the authority to investigate, intervene and monitor gaming enterprises that violate the Authority’s policies.
The act authorizes MGA to develop a “player support unit” to stand between players and operators in disputes. MGA CEO Heathcliff Farrugia commented: “This is a very important milestone for the MGA. The new law establishes very robust compliance and enforcement powers and structures.”
