Operators awarded licenses are:

• TOTO online (owned by Dutch government-backed Nederlandse Loterij)
• Holland Casino (owned by Dutch government)
• Dutch Janshen-Hahnraths Group (FPO Nederland brand)
• Betent
• Bingoal Nederland
• Hillside
• LiveScore Malta
• NSUS Malta
• Play North
• Tombola

Speaking on Dutch TV current affairs program Nieuwsuur on 27 September, KSA Chairman, René Jansen, confirmed that out of 30 applications, only ten had been approved, with the others likely to be rejected for failure to meet requirements. However, Jansen did suggest more licenses would be granted at a later date. 

Meanwhile, LeoVegas has announced it will cease to provide gambling services to the Netherlands as of today, 30 September 2021. The operator has previously been fined and warned by the KSA for offering what it deemed to be illegal online gambling to customers in the country. However, LeoVegas has said it took measures to ensure full compliance with Dutch prioritisation criteria, and the KSA’s policies, and that it intends to apply for a Dutch license later this year. 

In June, LeoVegas joined the Netherlands Online Gaming Association (NOGA), a trade body established to represent gambling providers operating in the country. 

AYO.NEWS says:

The KSA had previously hinted that it wouldn’t be looking kindly on those operators who had dared challenge its authority over the past few years, so it’s perhaps not surprising to see so many applications rejected at this stage. The question is, will the KSA soften its stance as it becomes more comfortable with the operation of the market, or will it continue to turn the screws, Swedish-style?

The new-look Expekt, which has been migrated to LeoVegas’ proprietary technical platform, Rhino, is initially launching in the Swedish market. 

Gustaf Hagman, LeoVegas’ Group CEO, commented: “It’s incredibly exciting for us as we launch the new Expekt today. The timing couldn’t be better with the eventful years in sport that we have in front of us. By running Expekt on our technical platform starting from today, customers will be able to partake in our award-winning gaming experience – both for sports betting and casino. Expekt will once again be a leading sports betting brand in Sweden and the Nordic countries, and that work starts today.”

LeoVegas’ acquisition of Expekt, from the Betclic Group, is part of its strategy to broaden its operations and place a stronger focus on sports betting. 

LeoVegas is set to make its US debut in New Jersey, following the expected certification of its proprietary tech platform, Rhino, by regulators. The company says it expects to welcome its first US customers during the first half of 2022. 

LeoVegas Group CEO, Gustaf Hagman, said: “We are proud to finally be able to share our plans to establish ourselves in the USA. We think the time and partner are right to launch ‘The King of Casino’ in the USA. The American market has immense growth potential, and players are just now discovering online gaming. In the USA, too, we will focus on what we are best at – offering an innovative, world-class gaming experience directly in mobile phones. Establishing ourselves with our proprietary platform is a strategic decision, and we know from other markets that having full control over our technology is a key competitive advantage.”

Staying with LeoVegas, earlier this month the company announced the launch of its own in-hours games studio, Blue Guru Games.

The company says its new studio will develop games exclusively for LeoVegas, along with titles made available to other operators. Blue Guru Games’ first products are expected to be released in late 2021. 

Blue Guru Games has been set-up through LeoVentures, with LeoVegas Mobile Gaming Group owning 85% of the new studio. The company says its founding team has more than 20 years experience in gaming development, and it aims to release at least 20 games over the coming two years.

Discussing the new venture, Gustaf Hagman, Group CEO, LeoVegas, said: “For a long time we have created exclusive games with the help of external providers, but now the time is right to take the step to do game development entirely on our own.

“Drawing from our data and casino knowledge we will be able to drive innovation and create games that our customers truly enjoy. These may be everything from niche, local games for individual markets to broad international games. In addition, we will create games and unique characters that can be used in our marketing, which will build stronger loyalty to our brands. Having great flexibility in producing games is a competitive advantage, and it will also give us a new revenue stream over time.”

In addition to Blue Guru Games, LeoVentures has also invested in companies including CasinoGrounds, Pixel.bet, and SharedPlay. LeoVegas also recently acquired sports betting brand Expekt from Betclic Group. 

The regulator says it took the action after LeoVegas was found to be in breach of certain customer due diligence routines during 2019 – the first year after the launch of the regulated Swedish gaming market. So far, the regulator has only reviewed LeoVegas’ 2019 routines. 

In response, LeoVegas has said it is continually developing its policies to ensure compliance, and that it had already updated those policies before the regulatory action. 

The company has stated it intends to appeal the regulator’s decision, so that a court can review the matter and give the industry clearer guidance on how regulations should be interpreted. 

LeoVegas, which operates 14 brands and licenses in eight different jurisdictions, has stressed it is subject to numerous audits and reviews by local supervisory authorities and external auditors each year, and that compliance is its top priority.

AYO.NEWS says:

Given the widespread confusion surrounding the specifics and nuances of regulatory requirements in the Swedish market since it launched at the start of 2019, we expect plenty more stories like this. Let’s hope the courts can help clarify matters. 

Expekt was one of the pioneering sports betting brands in Sweden and the Nordic nations, and LeoVegas says its acquisition will strengthen its brand portfolio with an established sports betting brand, and expand the company’s strategic growth opportunities. 

Discussing the acquisition, Gustaf Hagman, Group CEO LeoVegas, said:

“For those of us who grew up with online gambling in Sweden, Expekt is undeniably one of the pioneers in sports betting. I can remember back in the early 2000s when everyone played on Expekt. After a few years on the sidelines, we will now restore Expekt to its former glory as the leading sports betting brand.

“We are working resolutely to offer the ultimate mobile sports betting experience, which will entail a number of new innovations and new thinking with a starting point from what a mobile experience can entail for the big years of sport in 2021 and 2022. This is a milestone for LeoVegas and represents a broadening of our strategy. We look forward to Expekt once again becoming a leading sport brand in Sweden and the Nordic countries.”

Staying with LeoVegas, last week the operator became the first to launch an app on the Swedish, Danish, and Spanish Google Play stores.

The company says the development will allow even more secure and faster payments for customers, directly from their bank accounts, along with lower transaction costs. It will also reduce LeoVegas’ dependence on third party payment providers. 

Discussing the news LeoVegas Group CEO, Gustaf Hagman, said:

“Secure, seamless and fast payments are incredibly important, and the fact that we now – through PSD2 (the Second European Payment Services Directive) – have the opportunity to directly integrate with many European banks, will provide a superior customer experience offered by security and speed.

“Conducting transactions via open banking is also considerably more cost-effective compared with traditional payment methods. There is a high level of activity in our product and technology development organisation, and it is exciting to see all of the innovations we are delivering to our customers. We are first out in the industry with this pioneering payment solution, which will change the entire payments industry in the years ahead.”

LeoVegas has already rolled out open banking payments in the UK, with 10% of new customers already choosing the option. Open banking will now be launched in several of the operator’s core European markets. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Should payment service providers be worried about PSD2 leading to more operators taking advantage of open banking? In the long-run, probably. After all, why pay extra to make things slower and more complicated? The only real issue to uptake is probably awareness. For operators and customers it’s a win-win. 

Staying with LeoVegas, last week the company revealed it is considering raising significant new capital with a senior unsecured bond issue. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Soon-to-launch, Malta-licensed Mr Vegas has revealed its logo to be a top hat wearing lion, in green. As anyone familiar with the iGaming world will immediately recognise, the new casino is poking fun at two other well-known iGaming operators, namely LeoVegas and Mr Green. 

However, based on the reaction from many in the industry, it seems the concept of parody is unfamiliar to some, with the logo prompting bitter quarreling and accusations. 

But, based on what I remember from studying visual communications and graphic design at university, and my life experience since, it’s quite clear the Mr Vegas creative team has done nothing wrong.  

Sure, there’s a lion. But does it look like the LeoVegas lion? No. 

Yes, it’s wearing a top hat, but Mr Green wears a bowler hat. 

The logo is green. So what? My favourite colour is green. 

So, basically, by using a simple but clever combination of visuals, but without copying any elements at all, and certainly without trying to mimic/clone other branding to trick consumers, the Mr Vegas team have pulled off an excellent, and clearly very effective, branding coup! 

I’d call that innovative and refreshing in an industry that churns out clone after clone in terms of product, and is dominated by branding that makes the websites of building societies and insurance companies look exciting by comparison. 

In fact, maybe that’s the problem. As I’ve said before, spending some time working in the iGaming industry in Malta opened my eyes to a severe lack of creativity and humour (though, I suspect this is more often due to lack of vision at the management level, rather than in design teams themselves). 

Industry press releases are full of words like “innovative” and “groundbreaking”, but in reality, it’s been a long time since I saw anything in terms of online casino branding that genuinely made me smile – and rarely does an online casino launch generate this much discussion these days! 

Hats off to Mr Vegas. 

This article features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020