The Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) has reprimanded an unnamed operator after it failed to provide the regulator with the necessary information after it was acquired by an “international party”.
Dutch licence holders are obligated to notify the KSA of any changes in ownership and management in the company, or if someone is brought in who has the authority to change company policy.
This notification is required so that the regulator can conduct fresh due diligence checks regarding the new owner’s reliability and integrity.
These checks, as per the KSA, include determining if the new owners have previously worked with companies that offer illegal gambling or “other relevant violations or criminal activities”.
The operator in question was taken over by an international party but, according to the KSA, supplied the regulator with “incomplete information”.
The KSA said that when the acquisition was announced, it made several requests to the operator that was due to be acquired to provide the relevant information.
The KSA added that the licence holder has now committed a violation as the proper reliability checks cannot currently be carried out.
As a result, the firm now has 20 working days to submit the necessary information. For every day beyond that deadline, the licensee will be fined €25,000 up to a maximum of €250,000. Once the information is provided to the KSA’s satisfaction, the fines will cease.
The regulator said in a statement: “The KSA emphasises that the integrity of providers has a high priority and that it is the provider’s responsibility to demonstrate this reliability with the correct information.
“If research by the KSA shows that the reliability of a director is not beyond doubt, or if providers do not provide the correct information, the KSA can take enforcement action.”
Public M&A moves for Dutch licensees that have so far been concluded include Flutter’s £412m deal to acquire tombola, Entain snapping up BetCity in June 2022 and Betsson moving for Holland Gaming Technology earlier this year.
La Française des Jeux’s £2.1bn deal to acquire Kindred Group has yet to be completed at the time of writing.
Back in August, the KSA sent warnings to nine different operators for applying what it deemed “unauthorised conditions” to customer payouts.
The post KSA penalises unnamed operator for M&A notification violation first appeared on EGR Intel.