37M EUR Fine in the Netherlands, Slot Machine Fraud in Italy, Digital ID Verification in Vietnam & Other iGaming News

As you probably already know, the iGaming industry never stands still and this week was no exception. Our latest weekly roundup highlights all of the stories that you need to be aware of. We at Nostrabet.com had to go through a lot this week to sort out what’s worth it, so let’s learn more about the situation in the world right now.

Namibia Moves Towards Stricter Gambling Regulations and Digital Oversight

Namibia decided to take decisive steps to modernize its gambling industry by making a reform to the transparency, licensing and tax compliance. This comes following intense consultations in October.

Based on the info we have, the authorities are considering new operator fees, updated requirements and a new Central Electronic Monitoring System. The latter’s idea is to track transactions in real time.

The implementation will face various challenges, as the Gambling Board of Nigeria does not have sufficient staff to operate effectively. It also has a limited ability to enforce any regulations or collect revenue.

It seems like Namibia is trying to become one of the next big iGaming destinations in Africa. Only time will tell if it will succeed.

The Dutch Gambling Regulator Uses Record 37M EUR Fine Against an Illegal Gambling Operator

The gambling regulator in the Netherlands has imposed its largest-ever fine of 37M EUR. The commission fined EOD Code SRL because the latter offered unlicensed online gambling services to players n the country.

All of it began with an investigation that revealed the company is behind several websites. All of them allowed Dutch residents to place bets, but they did not have the proper permits to operate in the country.

Outside of that, the sites did not have an adequate age verification procedure and it accepted anonymous payments. This significantly increased the risk of money laundering. Regarding the fine’s size, it was calculated based on the site’s estimated illegal revenue from Dutch players.

The investigation also revealed that one of the popular AI assistants actually recommended unlicensed gambling platforms to local players. This seems to make the situation worse because the regulator in the Netherlands has been dealing with illegal sites for some time now.

Lula’s Re-Election & Brazil’s Gambling Ban

Brazil has become one of the most interesting countries for iGaming in the last few weeks following Lula’s complete ban. The country had its presidential elections a few days ago and the current Prezident Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva secured a victory by getting 52% of the votes. This means that the online sports betting industry will now have to start its long battle against Provisional Measure 1,394.

Representatives have already started challenging the ban through the country’s Supreme Federal Court and the National Congress. According to them, the ban threatens employment, and government tax revenue.

Some of the stats are truly shocking because operators have already lost more than 1.2B BRL in revenue. The government also missed out on more than 400M BRL in taxes.

No one knows what’s going to happen, but some people believe that sports betting may be coming back, while online casinos could remain restricted. We will have to wait and see what will happen because the Supreme Federal Court judge has scheduled a public hearing for November 3.

An interesting fact is that Flavio Bolsonaro fled Brazil after losing the elections. Some sources state that he is already in the USA because his name is linked to various betting investigations.

Turkey Investigates Live Betting Manipulation Worth $241K

Turkish authorities decided to investigate an alleged live betting manipulation scheme. The stats show that it caused licensed bookmakers to lose around TL12M, which is equal to $241k.

It became clear that an employee of Spordata deliberately delayed some of the live betting odds by around seven seconds. This occurred during tennis and volleyball matches, allowing some associates to place bets in advance, knowing the scores.

Following the investigation, authorities found that several suspects were involved in the scandal. All of this happens at a time when Turkey is taking firm action against illegal gambling. In fact, local authorities recently uncovered numerous suspicious transactions worth around 17.75B TL and believe they were also related to illegal gambling.

Finland Confirmmed 12 Companies That Got Their License Approved

Finland is set to launch its new iGaming market soon, and it seems that 12 companies have already been approved. The National Police Board decided to share the names of the companies that got the needed permit after more than 79 applications had been submitted.

What’s very interesting is that Veikkaus, the current state monopoly, was absent from the list of operators that got a permit. The company also submitted an application, but local authorities have yet to approve it. If that happens, the operator will have an advantage over the rest because it’s a well-known name in Finland.

It’s no surprise that Finland’s market opening has drawn companies from around the world. Many stats show that the country has one of the highest per-capita gambling rates. In fact, some estimates show that the total GGR reached close to 1.9B EUR in 2026 alone and 81% of that came from online sources.

Italy Uncovered a Slot Machine Fraud Scheme

Italian authorities have launched a special investigation into an alleged network for manipulating slot machines. Based on the details we have, it involves 15 suspects and this even includes an official from the country’s gambling regulator.

According to prosecutors in Cosenza, the group modified different gaming machines to divert bets away from the official monitoring systems. In other words, they enabled illegal gambling operations and also tax fraud.

Following the police raid, investigators seized 145 machines and around 80K EUR in cash. Italy’s regulator accepted payments and in return, it gave out confidential inspection information. This allowed operators to avoid detection and continue doing what they had been doing before.

After it became clear what was going on, Italian authorities took firm action, including temporary bans on gambling activities. The people involved are yet to face trial, so we will keep an eye on the situation. Keep in mind that this story comes after another major gambling fraud was discovered in the country, resulting in the seizure of over 25M EUR in assets.

Denmark Launches Campaign Against Gambling Features in Children’s Video Games

The Danish Gambling Authorities decided to launch a new awareness campaign that focuses on the risks of gambling-like features in video games that children play. The initiative’s goal is to educate parents about the dangers of things like random rewards and loot boxes. People behind the campaign made a short film and different educational resources to help people learn more about the situation.

These measures come at a time when the local government has decided to tighten restrictions on gambling advertising. Authorities recently banned gambling advertising during live sports events and people under the age of 25 are not allowed to take part in any promotional materials.

Australia Fined Star Entertainment With AU$260M for Money Laundering Failures

Australia’s Federal Court decided to order The Star Entertainment Group to pay AU$260M. It seems the company committed serious breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regulations.

The authorities follow investigations into the operator’s activities in New South Wales and Queensland. It seems like the company failed to meet the customer verification model, financial monitoring and risk management.

Around 1200 different customers were able to gamble using different high-risk channels without adequate safeguards. Star Entertainment also generated around AU$1.33B in revenue from customers who were at “high-risk”. All of this happened between 2016 and 2022.

The UK Raises Gaming Machine Tax to 25% Amind Industry Concerns

The UK government decided to increase the Machine Games Duty from 20% to 25%. Interestingly, this will impact the higher-stakes gaming machines and there won’t be any large tax hikes that the industry was worried about.

Needless to say, some operators were unhappy with the increase when Chancellor John Haeley announced it. They warned of potential venue closures, job losses and overall reduced investment. There were also warnings that the constant tax increase threatens the profitability of these businesses and they may stop operating at some point.

Some experts, such as Ismail Vali, warned that these measures also affect the illegal market in the UK. Based on some stats, it is now at around 9%, which is a massive increase from 0.43% in 2020.

Vietnam Introduces Digital ID Verification and Stricter Gambling Penalties

Vietnam decided to tighten its gambling regulations by introducing new digital identity verification requirements. The country will also impose more serious penalties on operators that violate licensing and compliance rules.

From November 15, 2026, all casinos and betting operators can verify customers through VNeID. The latter is the country’s national digital identification platform and it’s an alternative to the physical documents.

Of course, authorities will also introduce penalties for violations. Starting on December 5, the government will add a VND 200M fine for violating customer verification, record-keeping and AML requirements. Some of the more serious offenders may also receive a business suspension of up to 24 months.