KSA targets BlockDance BV over unlicensed operations

The Kansspelautoriteit, the Dutch Gambling Authority, has issued a €280,000 fine to BlockDance BV, the regulator said on its official website. The fine is not to be enforced with an immediate effect.

In a brief statement, the watchdog said that it is fining the company over offering unlicensed gambling through the BCGame.lu and BC.Game websites, following an initial investigation and subsequent monitoring established "illegal gambling."

Dutch regulator gives operator four weeks to withdraw or face penalty

Originally, the operator claimed that Dutch players had no access to the websites, but the Kansspelautoriteit determined this not to be true and has now pressed on with the penalty. The €280,000 fine increases proportionately each week and can accumulate to a maximum of €840,000.

However, these penalties can be withdrawn should BlockDance BV comply with the four-week notice period issued by the regulator. According to the regulator, the offenses it found the company guilty of include allowing Dutch players to create accounts on the website and offering an unlicensed and "illegal" form of online casino gambling.

The regulator insisted that BlockDance BV had taken no measures preventing Dutch players from accessing the website or creating an account. However, this is usually the subject of heated debate, as the regulator often goes to extensive lengths to prove that a website is extensive, usually by using a VPN, or forcing an entry into a website.

Illegal gambling not tolerated, the gambling regulator insists

While acquiescing to this, the regulator has argued that Dutch citizens playing out of the Netherlands and registered there should not be allowed to register all the same, never mind the means they used to access the website. In BlockDance BV’s case, it was possible to make a deposit and play, the regulator insisted.

The regulator has said that the Netherlands is a strictly regulated gambling market and as such, it takes a dim view of operators that try to break the rules. In the meantime, the Netherlands is at an interesting crossroads as more dissident voices are heard in Parliament to have the gambling industry subjected to tighter restrictions, including the elimination of online gambling.

A lawsuit in the Netherlands is also seeking to reimburse players who lost money to unlicensed websites before October 2021 when gambling became legal in the Netherlands.

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