SGA penalises Lucky Casino over lottery games breach
Glitnor Services Limited to pay €38,000 after offering lottery-based games in violation of Swedish law
The Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) has sanctioned Glitnor Services Limited SEK400,000 (€38,000) for offering non-profit gambling under its Swedish licence in violation of Swedish law.
The Malta-based operator and affiliate alerted the SGA in December 2019 after it found that several games offered under its Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) licence had accidentally been offered to Swedish players.
Games including Money Wheel, Dream Catcher, Monopoly Live and Deal or No Deal were made available to Swedish players on its Lucky Casino website for a six-month period between July and December 2019.
Glitnor Services Limited subsequently blocked the games to Swedish players, instigating a full investigation of the error. The company later confirmed a total of 478 Swedish players had played on the games during this period, generating turnover of approximately €69,000.
Glitnor Services Limited is currently licensed for online gambling and sports betting in Sweden, however the specific games involved are not included within the terms of its online gambling licence.
In its decision, the SGA determined the games were not slots-based games, but lottery-based games, something which can only be offered on a non-profit basis to Swedish players.
“Other lotteries, on the other hand, are not considered computer-simulated slot games, which means that they may not be provided under a licence to provide commercial online gambling, but only under a licence for non-profit purposes according to Chapter 6 of the Swedish Gambling Act,” the SGA wrote.
Under Swedish law, lottery-based games can only be offered on a commercial basis by state-owned operators such as Svenska Spel.
“The Gaming Inspectorate considers that offering games without a valid licence is typically a serious breach. However, the company has introduced new procedures, which is why there is reason to assume that the infringement will not be repeated,” the SGA ruled.
“Glitnor Services Limited contacted the Gaming Inspection. It is considered a mitigating circumstance and forms the basis for the low penalty charge,” the SGA added.
Swedish fines are determined on a case-by-case basis with a minimum level SEK5,000 and a maximum of 10% of the licence holder’s turnover in the previous financial year.
EGR has approached Glitnor Services Limited for comment.