iGaming operator Kindred Group has been warned by Norway’s gaming regulator, Lotteritilsynet, that it faces fines up to US$42.7 million within a year if it does not comply with orders to cease what the regulator considers to be illegal operations in the country.
Lotteritilsynet said that Kindred’s affiliate Trannel will be hit with a fine of $116,445 per day starting October 5, which is three weeks from the initial warning, issued on September 14.
Kindred has multiple brands that currently operate without licenses in Norway, including Trannel, Unibet, Storspiller and others, and therefore is considered to be illegal. The only operators with official licenses in the country are Norsk Rikstoto and Norsk Tipping, both of which are state-owned.
Trannel’s fines, according to the regulator, will only stop once the total equates to the company’s annual profits—projected to be around $42.7 million—or when the operator agrees to withdraw from the market.
Henrik Nordal, department director for the Norwegian Lottery and Foundation Authority, told iGaming Business that when an illegal operator “can earn NOK437m from its illegal activity in the course of a year, we owe it to the Norwegian people and those who struggle with gambling problems to do what we can to stop the illegal business.”
Nordal also noted that “six out of ten Norwegians do not know Unibet, Mariacasino, Storspiller and Bingo are illegal gambling in Norway. You can lose much more money on these games than you can on similar legal games in Norway. “
The case goes back multiple years, starting in April 2019 when Lotteritilsynet first ordered Trannel to cease operations in the country. Both sides have since gone back and forth with numerous appeals, culminating with a ruling from the Oslo District Court in June of this year that affirmed Lotteritilsynet’s initial decision.
Trannel appealed the ruling once again on September 2, and was again denied.
