Latest Gambling News: Norway's Lottery and Foundations Authority Names New Gambling Department Director, and more

Catch up on six of the stories our gambling compliance analysts have covered lately, and stay up-to-date on the latest news.

Norway's Lottery and Foundations Authority Names New Gambling Department Director

Norway’s Lottery and Foundations Authority has named Tore Bell as its new director of the gambling department.

Bell has worked for the regulator since 2001, becoming acting department director in October 2023; however, he had to fend off competition for the hotly contested role from 12 other applicants.

Atle Hamar, the director of the Lottery and Foundations Authority, welcomed the new appointment, calling Bell a “competent and experienced leader who can develop the department further”.

UK Gambling Commisison Appoints Interim Chair

The UK Gambling Commission has appointed Charles Counsell as its interim chair for a nine-month term starting on February 1, 2025.

Counsell has been the senior independent director at the Gambling Commission since April 2024.

He replaces Marcus Boyle who announced in November 2024 that he will step down as chair of the Gambling Commission, when his term is set to conclude on January 31, 2025.

Under Boyle’s tenure over the past three years, the gambling regulator has launched the fourth National Lottery licence and he has overseen the ongoing implementation of the Gambling Act Review and white paper, as well as the recruitment of a whole new board of commissioners.

Ukrainian Regulator Hits Back At 'Fake' Stories

Ukraine’s gambling regulator has hit back at what it claims are an increasing amount of “fake” stories, after local media reports circulated earlier this week claiming its commission chair Ivan Rudy has been detained in connection to alleged Russian money laundering by a licensed casino.

The Commission for Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (KRAIL) said it has yet to receive any official information regarding action taken by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) relating to Rudy’s alleged detention.

KRAIL said in a public message on December 19 that it “notes a significant increase in the number of manipulations and outright fakes related to the work of the state regulator in the information space”.

“We remind you of the importance of observing information hygiene and using only official and verified sources of information, as well as not spreading news that is not confirmed by official messages from government agencies,” according to KRAIL.

KRAIL added that it continues to operate as usual, “adhering to the principles of transparency and informing about the regulator's activities through the official website and KRAIL pages on social networks”.

Dutch Regulator Fines Unibet €400,000 For Self-Exclusion Failure

The Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) has issued Unibet’s Optdeck Service Limited a fine of €400,000 for allowing people on the country’s national self-exclusion register, Cruks, to gamble.

The KSA was informed that in mid-2023 Unibet had not performed checks to see if players were registered on Cruks before setting up accounts properly during the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Optdeck has indicated to the KSA that it will not appeal the fine.

The KSA said the self-exclusion register “is an important tool to combat gambling addiction and protect players from the unwanted effects of gambling. It is therefore of great importance that providers carry out these checks meticulously. If this does not happen, a fine will follow.”

Election Betting Ban Introduced In U.S. House of Representatives

Two U.S. Representatives have introduced legislation in the House to prohibit wagering on U.S. elections.

Representatives Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Andrea Salinas of Oregon, both Democrats, introduced the Ban Gambling on Elections Act, which would amend the federal Commodity Exchange Act to prohibit political election wagering of any kind.

The bill is a complement to similar legislation filed in the Senate by Oregon Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley. Both bills are extremely unlikely to see any activity before Congress adjourns for the term.

The legislative activity on election wagering comes following a federal court ruling that permitted commodity exchanges such as Kalshi and Robinhood to offer markets based on federal elections, including the U.S. presidential race.

Sportsbook operators in the U.S. do not offer wagering on elections, largely because of state laws or regulations that prohibit such activity.

“Betting on elections degrades them from an investment in leadership to a profit-maximizing game,” Merkley said. "In addition, this practice is corrupt since those betting can influence the outcome by funding late-cycle smear campaigns. It’s like betting on a baseball game when you control the umpire.”

Former Nevada Gaming Executive Stripped Of Gaming License

The Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) on Thursday approved a settlement agreement that revoked the gaming license of Scott Sibella, the former top executive with Resorts World Las Vegas and MGM.

The commission voted 3-0 with commissioner Rosa Solis-Rainey absent to approve a stipulation of settlement issued by the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB). Commissioner Abi Silver, citing a long-time friendship with Sibella, recused herself from the hearing.

As part of the settlement, Sibella, 62, will not be able to apply for a gaming license in Nevada until the end of 2028 and was fined $10,000 to cover a portion of the cost of the NGCB’s investigation.

Michael Somps, a senior deputy attorney general with the Nevada attorney general’s office, told the commission that the disciplinary complaint against Sibella addresses his failures while an executive at MGM Grand, and resolves any “responsibility attributable” to him at Resorts World Las Vegas.

Resorts World is involved in two pending disciplinary complaints filed by the control board in August. Somps said the five-year revocations were retroactive to December 27, 2023, the date that his plea agreement was filed in federal court.

Sibella pleaded guilty in January to one count of failure to file a suspicious activity report (SARs), a violation of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), while he oversaw the MGM Grand. Sibella on Thursday described himself as an “easy target.”

“The federal prosecutor in Los Angeles wanted to send a message loud and clear that the failure by casinos and their executives to comply with anti-money laundering laws would not be tolerated,” Sibella said.

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