One of the most talked-about topics in the tech-innovation space this year has been the credit gambling and measures to prevent it. Efforts to ban credit card gambling escalated in 2023, with Australia’s government publishing the Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill 2023 to address the issue. The bill aims to ban the use of credit cards for gambling and impose fines on operators that violate the ban, with potential penalties of up to AU$234,750 (£120,462/€140,014/US$150,467). Australia’s senate approved the credit card ban in December 2023, granting additional powers to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for enforcing the new penalty provisions.
In Sweden, the gambling authority Spelinspektionen called for a complete prohibition on credit card gambling in response to a government investigation on risky lending. Based on the country’s Gambling Act, Spelinspektionen emphasized that operators should not encourage players to borrow money for gambling purposes.
Scandinavia also witnessed several instances of payment-blocking in 2023. For instance, Spelinspektionen received strengthened powers from the Swedish government to combat illegal gambling, allowing them to block payments more effectively. Norway’s regulator, Lotteritilsynet, has been monitoring unlicensed gambling activities since the beginning of the year and reported an increase in banks contacting customers regarding illegal gambling transactions. A study revealed that eight out of 10 banks have measures in place to address such transactions. Lotteritilsynet announced its intention to monitor nine banks in September, ensuring compliance with the ban on processing transactions from illegal operators as stated in Section 5 of the country’s Gambling Act. The regulator has the authority to order banks to block specific transactions.
