The Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) has fined Svenska Spel SEK2m (£148,000) after the state-owned operator relocated two land-based gaming machines to locations not included in its licence.
In 2018, Svenska Spel was granted licences to host its Vegas slot machines at two bingo halls, one in the town of Kinna and one in Hagfors.
During a routine inspection concerning bingo licence applications, the SGA noted the slot machines had moved to different premises, without Svenska Spel having informed the regulator.
The Vegas machines in Kinna had moved to the nearby Skene, while the Hagfors machine remained in the same town, albeit at a different address.
The SGA ruled that the relocated machines were not covered by Svenska Spel’s bingo licence.
In September 2023, the authority contacted Svenska Spel to raise concerns over the transfer of the two machines, which then saw the operator submit a change of address notification.
A few months later in December, the SGA carried out an inspection at the new site in Hagfors – a shop with three Vegas machines housed inside and not a bingo hall.
The state-owned operator argued its bingo licence was not location-bound and therefore did not inform the SGA when it moved the machines.
Svenska Spel also stressed the gaming machines were shut down “immediately” when the issue came to light.
In a statement published on its website, operator said the penalty is as a result of an “administrative misunderstanding” of how the relocation process should have been managed at the time.
A company statement read: “The administrative misunderstanding consisted in Svenska Spel understanding that a change of address should be reported to the Registrar of the Swedish Gaming Authority.
“But from 1 July 2023, changes were introduced to the gaming regulation which means that when machines are moved, a notification about the gaming location must be made instead, which must then be tested.
“[The SGA] also pointed out that the two premises where the bingo halls have moved are not considered suitable as gaming venues for machine games.”
Thomas Engström, Svenska Spel operations sales manager for Vegas, noted: “We regret what has happened. Our intention was to do the right thing, but due to an administrative misunderstanding, it went wrong. It won’t happen again.”
In determining the SEK2m fine, the SGA was able to penalise Svenska Spel between SEK5,000 and up to 10% of turnover from the Vegas machines.
According to Svenska Spel, Vegas machines made net sales of SEK221.8m in 2022, meaning the maximum fine would have been SEK22.2m.
The SGA said: “Svenska Spel has cooperated with the Swedish Gambling Authority in the matter and submitted the information requested by the authority. The cooperation cannot, however, be considered to have been other than what can normally be expected of a licensee operating under supervision.
“Against this background, the SGA assesses that the penalty fee should amount to SEK2m. The SGA considers that this penalty fee is proportionate.”
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