PokerStars, Betfair Vying for Bulgarian Online License

Sat, Feb 1, 2014

With Bulgaria changing the way it would tax online gambling sites, a slew of operators—including PokerStars and Betfair—are trying to get into the country’s regulated market. The country is preparing for a dramatic expansion of online gaming.

PokerStars and Betfair are among a number of online gambling sites trying to crack into the Bulgarian market after the country changed the way it taxes online gambling sites.

Legislators voted to change the way it taxes online gambling sites in December, changing from a 15 percent tax on total turnover to a 20 percent tax on gross monthly profits. The move has brought serious interest from a number of online betting sites and the country is reportedly being flooded with new applications.

PokerStars, Betfair and Eurofootball Bulgaria, are among the companies interested in Bulgaria, according to published reports. The companies’ applications are currently being vetted by the State Commission on Gambling.

The country is also preparing for an expansion of its online gambling industry by accrediting UK player protection agency eCOGRA as an official tester of software and information systems by would-be Bulgarian applicants.

Meanwhile, Bulgaria’s State Agency National Security announced it had shut down an illegal online gambling operation run out of Varna on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast.

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