The Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) has issued bans to two Curaçao-based companies operating in the market without the required licence.
Bitx Operations NV and Ryker BV were both deemed by the regulator to be deliberately targeting Swedish players.
Regarding Bitx Operations NV, the SGA conducted an investigation into its playbet.io platform.
It found the website used Swedish language, that playbet.io had krona listed as a currency, as well as Sweden’s country code pre-selected when accessing the site from a Swedish IP address.
The website’s terms and conditions were also written in Swedish, as were some of the marketing materials of the company’s affiliates.
Additionally, the investigation discovered there were no measures in place to prevent Swedish players from registering on the site and creating an account.
An SGA statement said: “The Swedish Gambling Authority has assessed that Bitx Operations NV provides games in Sweden because the company uses Swedish text on the website playbet.io, offers SEK as a selectable currency, and that both the Swedish currency and the Swedish country code are pre-selected when accessing the website from a Swedish IP address.
“The company or the company’s so-called affiliates also have marketing in Swedish. Bitx Operations NV does not have a licence to provide games in Sweden. The Swedish Gambling Authority therefore decides to prohibit Bitx Operations NV from providing games in Sweden.
“The Swedish Gambling Authority considers that, in the interests of consumer protection and to guarantee gaming safety, it is important that the decision is complied with immediately.”
It was a similar case for Ryker BV, which had its jackbit.com site investigated by the SGA.
Once again, the platform was found displaying Swedish language, had Sweden’s country code pre-selected when accessing the website from a Swedish IP address, and had affiliate marketing materials directed at Swedish players.
Both companies were given the chance to provide the SGA with a comment on its findings, but neither has responded thus far.
Regarding Ryker BV, the regulator noted: “The Swedish Gambling Authority has assessed that Ryker BV provides games in Sweden because the company uses Swedish text on the jackbit.com website and because the Swedish country code is preselected when accessing the website from a Swedish IP address.
“In addition, the company markets the website through Swedish-speaking affiliates. This indicates that Sweden is one of the markets the company is targeting. Ryker BV does not have a licence to provide games in Sweden. The Swedish Gambling Authority has therefore decided to prohibit Ryker BV from providing games in Sweden.
“The Swedish Gambling Authority considers that, in the interests of consumer protection and to guarantee gaming safety, it is important that the decision is complied with immediately. The decision shall therefore apply immediately.”
In June, the SGA issued a ban to another Curaçao-based operator in the form of Simba NV for targeting Swedish players with its BetBlast, FoxyGold and SlotMonster sites.
Last month, the regulator did the same to Costa Rican firms Solid Software Solutions and Rabocse SRL.
The post Sweden’s regulator bans Curaçao-based operators in latest crackdown first appeared on EGR Intel.
Bitx Operations NV and Ryker BV were deemed by the Swedish Gambling Authority to be targeting players in the country without the necessary licence
The post Sweden’s regulator bans Curaçao-based operators in latest crackdown first appeared on EGR Intel.