Swedish Restrictions Can Lead to the Rise of the Black Market

During the past months, a lot of European countries made serious decisions. The commissions’ aim is to regulate online betting and casinos to prevent problem gambling. With those new rules, Swedish Restrictions appeared as well. Anyhow, these decisions by the authorities are controversial. Since the gambling firms with a proper license are saying that this way, they will only increase the interest of the sites which are illegal in the country. The regulations may be live from the 7th of May.

Gambling in Northern Europe never been easy. There were always unexpected regulations and unexpected supports from the governments. If you would like to learn more check out our Scandinavian Gambling Guide to discover the power relations in the world of ventures. Anyhow, at this moment, even if the panic slowly eases the Swedish government still strengthened their restrictions on gambling. By the way, according to Videoslots and other online gambling firms, these rules will only reduce the quotes but won’t solve the real problems.

A Closer Look at the Swedish Restrictions

The social security minister had an exaggerated reaction to the current situation. With the ministry, they will discuss the proposal this week (7th of May). The restrictions will set up weekly deposit limits, reform the bonus system and even more, it will force time limits on the online casinos, to keep their costumers away from playing on their platforms for too long. If they will agree on the Swedish restrictions, they will have probably the strictest rules in Europe for wagering.

Anyhow, according to the latest gambling news and to the online gambling firms which have a legal license in Sweden, the restrictions won’t help on problem gambling.

Where the Restrictions Can Lead

Even if the planned Swedish restrictions can sound like a solution to the current situation, a lot of sources suggest that this will only cause harm. This way the authorities will lose control over the gamblers who need help. Already, the Swedish market is struggling with online casinos without licenses. Thus, the regulation would only take away the profit from the firms which are following the right direction. While it would increase the revenue of the illegal sites. According to the latest researches, the number of gamblers who are using unlicensed sites in Sweden is already 40% and if this number grows that would cause unbelievable harm to the Swedish gambling industry.

Ewout Wierda, the General Counsel of Videoslots shared his opinion on the upcoming Swedish Restrictions: “The Government has no evidence of the need for measures or their effect. Licensed operators, on the other hand, can show there is no new risk… Forced fixed limits have proven to be ineffective by academic experts and they are inconsistent with systems focusing on customers who are most at risk.” – He also pointed on that -“Our player protection can help society cope with the current virus-related risks, but not if those players who need protection most choose black-market operators… Enforcement against black-market operators is needed but is not an alternative for the attractiveness of licensed operators.”

Here is another interview with Ewout, where he shares his constructive vision:

In summary, the protection of problem gamblers is essential nowadays, mostly during those hard months. Anyhow, it seems like authorities can only follow the path of power and restrictions. Whilst they should look for a more diplomatic way. The commission should also cooperate with trustworthy online gambling firms to find working solutions.