The Betting & Gaming Council (BGC) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the American Gaming Association (AGA) and the European Casino Association (ECA) for collaboration on global gaming industry issues.
Key priorities of the three parties in the partnership include illegal gambling, responsible gaming, innovation and security, as the MOU aims to create a platform for joint research projects and shared expertise amongst each organisation’s staff and members.
“This partnership marks a new chapter in our shared vision to build a world-class, trusted and sustainable betting and gaming industry,” commented Grainne Hurst, CEO of the Betting & Gaming Council.
“BGC members are rightly proud of their reputation as global leaders, and they know the power of collaboration. Working together with the AGA and ECA, I am confident our shared knowledge and expertise will be vital to bolstering safer gambling standards while tackling the threat of the growing and unsafe unregulated gambling black market in the UK.”
Scheduled for next January, the collaboration’s first initiative will be a law enforcement roundtable focused on combating illegal gambling, bringing together industry leaders, law enforcement officials and regulators.
Stakeholders at this roundtable will discuss illegal gambling’s impact on legal operators, consumer safety and the global financial system, in addition to examining strategies for improving cross-jurisdictional communication and developing actionable solutions to address these challenges.
“The European Casino Association stands united with the AGA and BGC in its commitment to addressing the key issues facing all gaming industry stakeholders”, stated Erwin van Lambaart, Chair of the European Casino Association.
“The ECA fully backs this initiative and supports the ongoing efforts to rigorously combat illegality within our industry, continuously strengthen player protections and security, and ensure the creation of an environment that fosters innovation and growth within the gaming community.
“On behalf of the ECA, I look forward to participating in the forthcoming law enforcement roundtable and to sharing the benefits of these learnings with our members.”
Bill Miller, CEO and President of the American Gaming Association, added: “This new partnership is a significant step forward in our collective efforts to advance the legal gaming industry and protect consumers around the globe.
“By sharing our unique resources, we will expand our fight against illegal gambling to new fronts, work together to strengthen responsible gaming, and innovate around business best practices.
“By fostering dialogue and cooperation across borders, the AGA, ECA, and BGC are taking a proactive approach to safeguarding the integrity of the legal gaming industry and ensuring its continued growth and success.”
After much speculation in the last few months, the government of France has moved to withdraw its progress of the iCasino market.
Changes were set to come to the market after proposed amendments to the 2025 budget were shelved, pushing back plans for a regulated french online casino market.
The decision was confirmed on Sunday by Budget Minister Laurent Saint-Martin, who underlined that increased consultations were needed to avoid the negative impacts and job losses warned by regional stakeholders.
The Minister commented on Radio J this weekend: “There was talk that the government would submit an amendment. This is no longer the case. I believe we need to work among ourselves first.
“I am very vigilant about this issue. We must not make mistakes. We must ensure that it doesn’t harm certain stakeholders, especially land-based casinos.”
As a result, France will maintain its 2010 gambling laws, upholding a fragmented marketplace that regulates sports betting, horseracing, and poker, but prohibits online casino activities.
The plans were originally introduced by new Prime Minister Michel Barnier, who sought to boost the country’s GDP as it navigates economic headwinds.
Economic upside would largely be fuelled by a 27.8% levy on online casinos’ gross gaming revenue as well as an increase in taxes to 55% on the country’s whole gambling industry.
Nonetheless, it received significant backlash from the land-based sector, specifically the Casinos de France, the trade body representing the country’s 200 land-based casinos.
Grégory Rabuel, President of CdF and CEO of Barrière Groupe, was damning about the bill, speaking to Les Echos, he described the move as “a totally ill-considered decision, without any consultation with stakeholders”.
As part of its JADE proposal, the CdF urged the regulatory body to allow physical casinos to have a period of three-year exclusivity to operate digital casinos.
Rabuel issued the following warning: “Opening up online casinos to competition will lead to a 20-30% drop in GGR for land-based casinos and the closure of 30% of establishments. This will have catastrophic consequences, particularly in social terms: it is estimated that 15,000 jobs will be lost. More generally, this is tantamount to signing the death warrant for land-based casinos.”
