Any last hopes of Cambodia reversing the decision to terminate its online gambling industry have evaporated, with licenses expiring in just a few days.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, acting under Chinese pressure, ordered licenses should not be renewed back in August (read more), however some in the industry still had hopes the decision would be reversed before the turn of 2020.

But, speaking at the recent 8^th Sea Festival in Kampot province, Prime Minister Hun Sen confirmed the industry was finished, saying that the danger of money laundering was too great to allow the sector to exist in the country, and that in the coming days online gambling will completely disappear in Cambodia.

AYO.NEWS says:

Its always been clear that Cambodia made this decision due to Chinese pressure, so its tough to know if Cambodian’s were really that fearful of money laundering. As we stated in the AYO.NEWS CRYSTAL BALL 2020, we also think the Philippines could bow to Chinese pressure and introduce sweeping new regulations or bans at some point in 2020, despite President Duterte’s defiance so far (read more).

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

Malta-based Play’n GO has expanded its reach in the rapidly growing LatAm market, going live with BetWarrior.

BetWarrior was launched by Morten Tonneson and José Del Pino, former marketing directors of PokerStars, with the aim of redefining the mobile gaming sector.

Commenting on the news BetWarrior co-founder, José Del Pino, said:

“We have a clear vision of where we want to go and how to deliver quality entertainment to the players in the region. Play’n GO is an ideal partner for us to join forces with; they bring top quality content and a wealth of experience, that is going to make 2020 a great year for us.”

While head of sales and account management at Play’n GO, Magnus Olsson, added:

“BetWarrior has been built by a highly knowledgeable and experienced team, with a deep understanding of the LatAm market. We are very happy to collaborate with them on their successful journey, and we look forward to their players enjoying a quality selection of Play’n GO games.”

Latin America is becoming an increasingly important market for many suppliers and operators. In September, Play’n GO also entered a partnership with multinational Spanish operator Codere, giving it a strong foothold in key LatAm markets like Mexico and Colombia.

It’s been a good end to the year for Play’n GO, with the company picking up the title of Mobile Gaming Provider of the Year at the Malta Gaming Awards during SiGMA 2019.

Soft2Bet, the casino and sportsbook group, has announced it will be entering the Japanese market for the first time, launching its AlfCasino brand in the country.

Evolution Gaming will be supplying Soft2Bet with live casino, along with multiple versions of Baccarat, Dragon Tiger and dice games. They will be rolled out to the Japanese market alongside the already extensive portfolio of Roulette, Blackjack tables and Game Shows – live casino games with presenters, including Money Wheel, Monopoly, and Deal or No Deal.

The operator will be offering Japanese casino players popular local payment options including Ecopayz, StickPay and Venus Point.

Commenting on the news Head of Casino at Soft2Bet, Teodora Breskovska, said:

“We are thrilled to be entering Japan with AlfCasino, the first brand in our portfolio to be available in this exciting market.

“Looking forward, we are planning to expand our offering to the customers with more games by more software suppliers, as well as a greater variety of promotions to reward the customer’s loyalty. So, stay tuned!”

Soft2Bet was launched in 2017 and now has offices in Ukraine, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Malta. The company has SGA, MGA and Curacao licenses, and is in the process of obtaining further EU licenses.

AYO.NEWS says:

The Japanese online gambling market is potentially extremely lucrative, though it can prove challenging for European-based operators to understand the subtle cultural nuances critical to success in the country.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

British online gambling giant Bet365 has reported annual revenue of almost £3 billion for the 2018-19 fiscal year, ending 31^st March.

Bet365’s annual gaming revenue hit the £2.98 billion mark – a 10% year-on-year increase. The company’s operating profits were also up 12% to £767.1 million, and profits after tax jumped 16% to £681.7 million year-on-year.

Significantly, Bet365’s active customer base across all platforms rocketed by 23% year-on-year, while new customers contributed £64.5 billion to the company’s overall betting handle, a 22.7% jump year-on-year.

Notably, in-play betting contributed a staggering 79% of Bet365’s betting revenues, and mobile betting grew 18%.

AYO.NEWS says:

Well, we think its safe to say its been a pretty good fiscal year for Bet365! Of course, next year may present some challenges as the company, which has significant operations in Gibraltar, braces for Brexit (read more), but on the whole, with a new world of opportunity to exploit in the United States (read more), the future seems very bright!

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

Slots and table games provider Habanero has entered the Portuguese market for the first time, through a deal with Casino Solverde.

Casino Solverde, Portugal’s second largest online casino operator, has integrated Habanero’s portfolio of certified slot games, including Santa’s Village, Wild Trucks, and Mount Mazuma.

Commenting on the news, European Head of Business Development at Habanero, Arcangelo Lonoce, said:

“We pride ourselves in creating immersive casino content well-suited to a variety of players. Signing with a highly-respected operator such as Casino Solverde demonstrates the success of our approach.

“Entering another key market also typifies our plans for expansion across the world’s leading territories and I am confident that our games will be as popular in Portugal as elsewhere.”

While Director at Solverde, Américo Loureiro, added:

“Habanero has a proven track-record of producing innovative slot and table games, and we’ve no doubt that the supplier’s premium content will be a hit.

“Partnering with high-quality providers such as Habanero reinforces our reputation as Portugal’s leading operator, and we look forward to a productive commercial relationship.”

Staying with Habanero, just three weeks ago AYO.NEWS reported the company was also expanding its Italian footprint, through a partnership with major operator SISAL (read more).

Veikkaus, the Finnish gambling monopoly, has warned it is expecting to lose €50m in revenue next year because of new corporate responsibility measures.

In a statement, the operator said it expected earnings to fall to about €963m – around the same it generated back in 2014 when it was structured as three different companies.

The new responsibility measures blamed for the predicted revenue drop include mandatory identification for its slots and other games, reducing the number of slot machines it operates, and introducing a completely new, more responsible marketing strategy.

Financial reporting will also be updated to bring it in line with the International Financial Reporting Standard.

Veikkaus’ CEO, Olli Sarekoski, has previously admitted the operator hasn’t done enough to reduce gambling harm, and the company’s marketing has come under fierce attack by Finland’s National Institute for Health and Welfare, national media and the public this year – causing it to take the drastic step of unilaterally suspending advertising in August (read more).

The operator reported a 4% fall in year-on-year revenue for the nine months to September 2019.

Staying with Veikkaus, just last week AYO.NEWS reported Yggdrasil’s casino games portfolio had gone live with the operator (read more).

AYO.NEWS says:

Veikkaus is in a difficult position. Being the only license operator in Finland, it is well and truly under the spotlight all the time, and is expected to be a beacon of responsibility. However, as we all know, in reality it also has to compete with a huge number of unlicensed offshore operators – none of whom are under the same scrutiny or subject to the same rules.

If ever there was a case for market liberalisation to promote responsible gaming it is the Finnish situation!

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.