The Dutch gambling regulatory authority, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has contacted operators regarding alleged violations of the country's payment rules, following an investigation that found 13 operators may not have complied with licensing requirements. The investigation revealed that 9 operators hindered payments to customers, while 4 are suspected of doing so.
The regulatory authority had previously issued a reminder to operators in March, pointing out that the Dutch Gambling Act requires the immediate and unconditional processing of players' payment requests. This means that operators cannot set minimum payment amounts or betting requirements.
KSA has requested all 13 providers to confirm in writing that they do not set minimum withdrawal amounts or other requirements.
The regulatory authority stated: "Providers must not impose structural conditions that hinder direct payments. Therefore, player credits must be returned promptly without unnecessary delay. Nevertheless, signals received by KSA indicate that online gambling providers indeed impose conditions on the payment of player credits."
Earlier this month, KSA's new chairman Michel Groothuizen stated that the reform plan for the Dutch Remote Gambling Act will maintain continuity. This was his first blog post since taking office on July 1, in which he mentioned the new Dutch Gambling Minister and the coalition government, who have a stronger view on gambling, but he stated that continuity and predictability will be key features during his tenure.
He wrote: "Comparing the turnover at KSA with the formation of the new cabinet might seem a bit contrived. The reason for such a comparison is necessary because the moment I took over from my predecessor René Jansen coincided exactly with the photo on the steps of the Schoof cabinet. Regardless of your political leanings, you can easily say that this is a special cabinet, with many new faces among the ministers, a different atmosphere, and many striking documents that are quite different from the previous Rutte administration."
