The Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) has U-turned on provisionally awarding a contract to provide gambling blocking software to Dutch citizens, after Gamban lodged a legal objection over the regulator’s decision to choose BetBlocker as the preferred bidder.
A summary hearing initiated by Gamban was due to take place in the District Court of the Hague at 11am this Thursday, 11 June, yet the case will no longer be heard now that the KSA has decided not to give the contract to BetBlocker at this time.
Back in November 2024, the KSA agreed to fund a pilot that involved Gamban providing its blocking software for free in the Netherlands, similar to the privately owned company’s partnerships with state-controlled operators Norsk Tipping in Norway and Finland’s Veikkaus, respectively.
Those seeking support could obtain a free one-year subscription to a Dutch version of the product by contacting Loket Kansspel, the country’s national gambling support service and helpline.
Then, in early 2026, the KSA put a gambling blocking contract out to tender, with a deadline of 27 March to complete the paperwork and submit bids via the Dutch government’s official online procurement system, TenderNed.nl.
The contract was due to run for three years, along with a maximum of two extensions lasting 24 months each, which could potentially mean seven years in total for the successful tender winner.
Applicants were asked to provide pricing, inclusive of VAT, based on their gambling blocking tool gaining 30,000 signups per year up to a maximum of 210,000 cumulative registrations in year seven.
The tender included a price cap of €460,000 per year. If an annual amount submitted in the tender documents surpassed this threshold in any given year, the application was automatically rejected.
It was also stipulated that the software to block licensed and unlicensed sites should be available 24/7 across iOS, Android and various desktop browsers and operating systems, as well as support multiple languages, including Dutch and English, but also Turkish and Arabic.
Stumbling block
Exactly a week after the application deadline, on the 3 April, BetBlocker, a UK-registered charity that allows people to sign up to its multilingual service anonymously, was notified by the Dutch regulator that it had provisionally won the contract.
Yet three weeks later, on 24 April, BetBlocker discovered there had been a legal objection submitted by Gamban and that a summary hearing was scheduled to take place at the District Court of the Hague.
It’s not clear what the grounds for the objection were, while Gamban chose not to comment when contacted by EGR.
BetBlocker’s trustee and founder, Duncan Garvie, said he was informed on 2 June the KSA was “withdrawing their provisional tender award” as the regulator needed more time before the court hearing to “complete the verification of the tender process”.
When contacted, a spokesperson for the KSA said the situation is “still ongoing and we have no further comment for now”.
In response to the developments, Garvie said BetBlocker is “completely supportive of the KSA conducting a full and robust verification process”.
He told EGR: “This is an important decision that has the potential to impact tens of thousands of lives in the Netherlands, and time and care should be taken to ensure that the highest quality decision is reached.
“At the present time it is our hope that once the verification process is complete, our tender will be upheld and we will be able to move forward in our cooperation with the regulator to support vulnerable communities in the Netherlands that are sadly being left without support while this matter is being addressed.”
The developments in the Netherlands come approximately six weeks after EGR exclusively revealed BetBlocker’s lawyers had written to NHS Wales over Gamban being awarded the contract to provide gambling blocking software for free in Wales.
BetBlocker’s legal team argued it had “significant concerns”, largely due to the fact the £220,000 contract had been signed off “without going through the typical process of a competitive tender”.
Meanwhile, in April, England’s Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) announced that BetBlocker would be one of the 33 organisations to be awarded a share of £25m over a two-year period to support the reduction of gambling-related harm
Being a limited company, Southampton-based Gamban was excluded from funding distributed by the OHID that sees online gambling operators hand over 1.1% of their gross gambling yield for research, prevention and treatment (RPT) as part of the statutory levy.
OHID was only able to hand grants to “voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector organisations to prevent gambling-related harms”, as part of its role as commissioner.
While previously free in England, Scotland and Wales, Gamban has switched to a subscription service of £4.99 a month or £29.99 a year in England and Scotland. It is free in Wales.
As for the Netherlands, EGR understands the KSA will soon publish its reasoning for the decision to not to provisionally award the contract to BetBlocker.
Last year, the total number of registrations with the country’s self-exclusion register, known as Cruks, exceeded 100,000, which represents approximately 0.6% of the population. However, Crucks only applies to licensed sites.
The KSA reported in April that the regulated Dutch market shrank by 18.5% in 2025, while the channelisation rate in terms of money gambling with legal operators was just 53%.
The Netherlands imposes net deposit limits of €700 per month (€300 for 18- to 25-year-olds), along with restrictions on gambling advertising, including sports sponsorships.
Taxes paid by licensed operators on gross revenue increased from 34.2% to 37.8% as of January, making it one of the highest rates in Europe.
The post Exclusive: KSA halts award of gambling block contract after Gamban legal challenge first appeared on EGR Intel.
A competitive tender had resulted in Dutch regulator provisionally selecting UK-registered charity BetBlocker to provide a free tool to bar access to licensed and illegal operators
The post Exclusive: KSA halts award of gambling block contract after Gamban legal challenge first appeared on EGR Intel.