Like every week, this one gave us access to tons of intriguing news about a variety of topics in the gambling industry. The team at Nostrabet took the time to go through each one and summarized the most intriguing news. There’s a lot to talk about, so let’s see everything that is new.
Sweden Notices That Loot Boxes and Problem Gambling Have Are Linked Together
Sweden is one of the leading countries in Europe in terms of online gambling. With that said, the most recent Spelinkspektionen report shows that there’s a link between loot boxes and people developing gambling problems.
The report is intriguing because it shows that people who purchased loot boxes when they were young often develop problems related to gambling later on. The study says that 87% of those who went for loot boxes before 15 years of age displayed risky behaviour while gambling.
If you keep reading the report, you will also find details related to the increase in underage gambling. It also highlights that people’s daily exposure to gambling ads could also affect problem gambling. Who knows, Sweden may decide to make legislative changes after this report and follow the example of other countries.
Some People in the UK Rely on Gambling To Escape Reality
While we are on the topic of reports, the next thing we need to talk about comes from the UK. A survey a few months ago aimed to see what motivates people to gamble. After asking a series of questions to more than 9700 participants, it became clear that 86% of them gamble because they want to win a lot of money. This probably doesn’t come as a surprise because money is the main motivator for many people.
The second-most popular answer was “because it is fun,” and 70% of people chose it. 58% selected “to make money,” whereas 55% chose “because betting is exciting.”
An interesting fact is that 24% said they gamble because they want to socialize. The latter has become important even among online platforms. That’s why a lot of them have chats, forums, and other options that allow people to come together.
Lastly, 8% of people said they gamble because they want to impress others, whereas 9% answered that they do it because they want to compete with others.
A Fugitive Related to Singapore’s S$3B Money Laundering Scheme
Singapore is not the first place that comes to mind when thinking about gambling. However, one of the world’s most developed countries became popular following a S$3B money-laundering scheme. Considering the amount, it’s no surprise it is one of the largest such schemes so far.
To make a long story short, several people used illegal gambling activities to launder close to S$3B. After the authorities realized what was going on, some people who were involved in illegal activities were arrested. The latest one is Vang Shuiming, who was arrested in Montenegro.
According to the authorities, Vang Shuiming (also called Wang) had several passports and was travelling from the Maldives to Montenegro via a private jet. After landing there, however, the local authorities decided to act and arrested Wang.
What’s interesting about Wang is that he has already served a 14-months prison sentence in Singapore. He also had to forfeit many assets with a combined worth of around S$240M. Despite his punishment, he can get another sentence, but this time, from the authorities in China.
Ohio Could Double The Sports Betting Tax
Following the legislative changes related to sports betting in the USA, a lot of states legalized this activity. Ohio is among them, and the state even increased the sports betting taxes in 2023 (from 10% to 20%). Once one of the best states in terms of gambling taxes, it quickly became one of the worst in this regard.
Just when people and sports betting companies thought it was over, Ohio’s governor came up with the idea to double the tax rate again. The potential bump to 40% will make Ohio the second-highest sports betting tax state in the US after New York, where the number is 51%.
It comes as no surprise that this idea is not supported by companies that operate in this state. Keep in mind that Ohio is among the places where you can find all the big sports betting operators in America.
UK’s Gambling Commission Announces Limits For People Who Deposit For the First Time
The UKGC is one of the world’s most famous gambling regulators, responsible for handling almost everything gambling-related in the UK. To battle the growing issues related to problem gambling in the country, the UKGC introduced several changes, one of which is very important.
To give customers more effective ways of managing their funds, from October 31, 2025, the UKGC will demand all gambling businesses to prompt their customers to set a final limit before making their first deposit. Furthermore, companies must do everything possible to make it easy to use and allow people to change the limits when they want to.
Austria Could Finally Regulate the Online Gambling Market in the Country
Austria is among the few countries in Europe that have very different gambling laws from those found in other EU states. Instead of allowing many different types of casinos, Casinos Austria has a monopoly over the local market and uses a 15-year license. With that said, it seems like the local authorities may finally give the green light to a regulated iGaming market.
Nothing is certain yet because Austria will have to wait for its new government to come to power. It is worth noting that there have been previous attempts to regulate the online gambling market. In fact, several proposals were made in this direction, but all of them faced opposition from certain parties.
Considering that Austria is among the few remaining EU countries with such types of regulations, things may change in 2025. This step will give people the freedom to choose from more operators and increase tax revenue. We will keep an eye on the results to see what happens.
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