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Gibraltar’s new Gambling Act is “a little delayed”, according to the territory's gambling commissioner Andrew Lyman.
In May 2022, Gibraltar’s government issued a command paper for consultation on a draft Gambling Act that would repeal and replace the current Gambling Act.
The bill, which covers both online and land-based gambling, aims to introduce more flexibility with licensing, specifically around the issue of equipment location, and extend the list of activities and categories of licensees.
“Since the Bill was published on the Parliamentary website, there have been further iterations (due to industry engagement) and the new Minister wanted a further round of informal consultation with key stakeholders (not just existing licensees, but also others brought within scope),” Lyman told Vixio GamblingCompliance.
That consultation ended recently and a final version of the proposed bill is expected on the parliamentary website “within the next few weeks”, Lyman said.
“We are planning on going live on October 1, 2025, subject to parliament approving the bill before then,” he said.
Around 70 to 80 percent of the Gibraltar gambling sector is UK-facing, and it contributes £750m ($944m) in gambling taxes to the UK Exchequer, according to Lyman.
“However, Gibraltar remains an important hub for many multi-jurisdictional operators, and even before the implementation of the new Act, we have continued to see a steady inflow of B2B and B2C licensees into the jurisdiction,” he said.
Lyman also pointed out that Gibraltar has “developed a regulatory regime for blockchain and has licensed a crypto bank, a number of crypto exchanges and other derivative operations”.
“Therefore, there is every reason why the very best crypto gambling operators should consider Gibraltar as a jurisdiction for licensing; provided they are happy to meet AML and social responsibility standards.
“Gibraltar now has inherent expertise in this area, both from a regulatory and professional services perspective, as well as a payments ecosystem,” he said.
Speaking in London in December 2023, Lyman was hopeful that a new Gibraltar Gambling Act would be passed before Autumn 2024.
However, movement on the long-awaited bill was slower than expected.
In 2024, Nigel Feetham, minister for justice, trade and industry, promised that a new bill to be published shortly and enacted early the following year would usher in an “accessible and pragmatic” gambling regime, including new powers for issuing fines.
The biggest reason for tightening rules was “reputational risk” for Gibraltar, the minister said.
Vixio’s Gibraltar Country Report was updated in February.
