The GI Newswire: 8 July 2024

Finland releases licence system law draft for new gambling act

The Ministry of the Interior has submitted draft legislation for a new gambling act in Finland. This proposal, part of a broader government reform, aims to end Veikkaus Oy’s monopoly on betting, online slot machines and casino games – opening these sectors up to competition through a licensing system. Currently, Veikkaus Oy holds the exclusive right to offer gambling games in Finland. However, a significant amount of online gambling occurs outside this monopoly, with enterprises operating beyond national regulation and oversight. Read the full story here.

Other stories from Europe:

• Betting and Gaming Council commits to collaboration with new Labour Government (Read)
• Spillemyndigheden gains more response options with Gambling Act amendment (Read)
• Spanish gambling operators join initiative to combat sports betting fraud (Read)
• NOGA expresses concern around latest addiction care figures (Read)
• Boomerang named AC Milan's official regional betting partner in Europe (Read)

IRS: CCC owes US unpaid tax of $5.8m

The Department of Treasury Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has filed a tax lien against the Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC) for over $5.8m in unpaid taxes backdated to at least 2022. The tax lien was filed with the US District Court. As reported by Saipan news agencies, the federal tax lien, for the tax period ending December 31, 2022, showed that the CCC has “an unpaid balance of $5,863,195.43.” Read the full story here.

Macau gross gaming income grows 16.4% in June

The Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) has released figures for gaming revenue in Macau for the month of May.?Monthly gross income during the period reached MOP$17.7bn (US$2.21bn), representing year-on-year growth of 16.4%. However, this also reflects a decline of about 12.4% when compared with May’s figures.?Looking at cumulative gross income, this was up by 41.9% when compared with June 2023’s figure, for a total of MOP$113.8bn. However, despite this month being the one to push this year's gross gaming income over the MOP100bn mark,?MOP$17.7bn is still the smallest monthly income reported this year so far. Read the full story here.

Other stories from Asia-Pacific:

• Singapore lowers threshold for due diligence checks on customer cash deposits (Read)
• NSW Government implements new harm minimisation measures for pubs and clubs (Read)
• Star Brisbane to open first phase on 29 August, Company Secretary resigns (Read)
• Indonesian Government to conduct internal gambling investigation (Read)
• PH Resorts' Emerald Bay deal with Okada Manila terminated (Read)
• Alvin Chau’s appeal rejected by Macau Court?of Final Appeal (Read)