Latest Gambling News: Sri Lanka Proceeds With Creation Of Gambling Regulator, and more

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

Sri Lanka Proceeds With Creation Of Gambling Regulator  

After a nearly two-year delay, the Sri Lankan government has announced it will draft legislation to form a dedicated gambling regulator with a view to boosting tourism and economic growth.

The announcement promises a new era of regulatory clarity and industry expansion as the government seeks to overhaul revenue streams that have suffered years of disruption.

While the regulator was first given the green light in June 2023 in principle, the Cabinet only decided at its latest meeting on Monday (February 24) that the Gambling Regulation Authority could enter its legislative drafting phase.

The regulator will be an “independent establishment with a broad and complete subject arena to standardise gambling institutions, minimise social damage, promotion of [the] tourism sector and ensure economic growth”, according to a summary of Cabinet decisions on Monday.

The Cabinet’s decision followed a resolution from Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in his capacity as finance and economic development minister.

Sri Lanka’s land-based casino segment has gradually expanded to six properties, with two major projects on the way.

The new additions will be City of Dreams Sri Lanka, a joint venture between Macau’s Melco Resorts & Entertainment and local powerhouse John Keells Holdings, and the Sri Lanka-India joint venture Majestic Pride Casino at the Lotus Tower, both in the capital Colombo.

The long-awaited decision on the regulator coincides with the annual budget’s increase in entry fees for casino customers from $50 to $100, and a rise in the gross collection levy from 15 percent to 18 percent.

Romario Accepts Betting Ads on His YouTube Channel

Romario is currently the rapporteur of the parliamentary investigation (CPI) into match-fixing, which has been extended until April 1 and began its work in April 2024.

His newly launched YouTube channel “Romário TV” already boasts 334,000 subscribers and is sponsored by operator Superbet.

The CPI was extended at the 11th hour in early February, meaning that Romário had already written up his preliminary findings. His report called for restricting betting on isolated events, including yellow cards and corner kicks, which would presumably affect his sponsor Superbet.

It also recommended putting clearly into law the necessity of warnings about the risks of gambling addiction on gaming sites.

Romário is not alone in his sponsorship. The president of the CPI, Senator Jorge Kajuru, had ads for BETesporte on his talk show.

PointsBet In Takeover Stalemate With BlueBet, Mixi  

A clash between the board of Australian online bookmaker PointsBet and high-profile corporate shareholders has spilled into the media, with the board supporting a takeover by Japanese corporation Mixi and the latter backing Australian rival BlueBet.

Mixi and BlueBet recently made takeover offers of A$353m ($222m) and between A$340m and A$380m in cash and scrip from Mixi and BlueBet, respectively, with the PointsBet board unanimously supporting the Mixi bid, the Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported on Wednesday (February 26).

AFR sources close to PointsBet said the BlueBet offer, while possibly larger, was “highly conditional”, lacking in funding certainty and without clear cost-saving synergies.

However, the newspaper quoted investment managers and PointsBet shareholders Wilson Asset Management and Pendal as saying the Mixi deal undervalues PointsBet and that they will vote against its offer, potentially splitting the PointsBet board and leading shareholders.

A PointsBet takeover would be the latest corporate consolidation in response to keener competition, falling margins and tighter regulation in the Australian market as public sentiment turns against ubiquitous sports-betting advertising and problem gambling.

Pennsylvania Fines Presque Isle Downs For Slot Violations

Presque Isle Downs and Casino, which is owned by Churchill Downs Inc., has been fined $50,000 by Pennsylvania regulators for violating minimum slot machine requirements during reconfiguring its gaming floor.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) voted unanimously Wednesday (February 29) to approve a settlement for several violations of the Gaming Act’s requirement that a minimum of 1,500 slot machines be on the floor at a licensed casino.

Lou Frascogna, vice president corporate compliance officer and senior counsel with Churchill Downs, admitted to the violations in the original complaint but told the control board that Presque Isla “has advocated and will continue to advocate with legislators … that the minimum of 1,500 is effectively no longer  a necessary floor for operators in the state of Pennsylvania.”

Frascogna reminded regulators that when the requirement was put into place in 2004, lawmakers did not contemplate that one day there would be retail and online sports betting, iGaming, some 100,000 unregulated skill games, and the legalization of gaming in adjacent states.

On average, Presque Isle uses between 30 and 50 percent of its actual number of machines, even during peak hours. Frascogna said that there are probably 400 to 500 excess machines that are not used even at peak times.

The PGCB also approved a $31,575 fine to settle a complaint with Presque Isle for failing to timely file a principal license application for Jonathan Rauch, Churchill Downs vice president, chief accounting officer.

Swedish Government Responds to Audit Report

The Swedish government has responded to the findings of the National Audit Office’s report for 2024, finding the Swedish Gambling Authority’s (SGA) supervision lacking, as they do not conduct enough inspections and do not follow up sufficiently when shortcomings are reported.

The audit also said that the current form of the Gambling Act makes the fight against illegal gambling difficult.

In its response, the government shared that it had taken “several measures to strengthen the Swedish Gambling Authority’s conditions for conducting supervision”, without specifying what those measures are.

The letter said that they had assigned “an expert” with the role at the Ministry of Finance to help “in submitting proposals on how the scope of application of the Gambling Act should be designed”.

That expert was already announced last week and has until September 17 to present their findings.

Czechia Prevented €21.6m Gambling Tax Evasion Scheme

Czechia's Financial Administration has said it saved the government CZ$540m (€21.6m) by uncovering extensive tax evasion in the gambling sector perpetrated by an unnamed operator.

In an update on February 20, 2025, the Financial Administration said it uncovered suspicious behaviour and cash flows reported by the operator using data analysis. This revealed irregularities that led to an additional tax assessment of CZK$340m.

The operator also incorrectly reported fees and commission, meaning the total financial impact would exceed CZK$540m.

Otakar Sladkovský, director of the specialised tax office, said: “Our goal is clear — to protect fair entrepreneurs and ensure that everyone pays taxes according to the same rules. This case is proof that modern analytical tools and the careful work of our inspectors bring concrete results.”

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