UK Minister Urges Gambling Industry to Tackle Risks of Problem Gambling During Coronavirus Outbreak

Maxima Compliance managing director Antonio Zanghi spoke with European Gaming to discuss how the ongoing global crisis is creating new challenges across the field of compliance, and what both operators and suppliers must do to adapt.

What does the gaming industry need to consider from a compliance perspective during the global lockdown?

We need to remember that the additional scrutiny that our sector has been under over the past couple of years has not disappeared because of this crisis. If anything, we are being watched even more closely than before.

In the UK, Labour MP Carolyn Harris has already been vocal about the additional dangers isolation will place upon those at risk of problem gambling in the UK.

And in France, regulator ARJEL has warned its licensees not to aggressively target new players with bonuses during the lockdown.

Concerns about player safety are top of the agenda right now, and a single slip up could prove costly.

The temptation for operators concerned about the financial impact of COVID-19 will be to loosen player, AML and responsible gambling checks.

In fact, the opposite is required. We are being watched closely, and a slip up by one operator will impact us all. Do not expect regulators to be forgiving of anyone seen to be exploiting the current situation.

What new compliance challenges is the COVID-19 crisis creating?

One interesting area has been the impact on the way suppliers approach technical compliance.These suppliers are under pressure to quickly deliver new content that can thrive in the current environment.

We’ve seen operators looking to immediately roll out new virtual sports and esports products, or change the way existing products and platforms operate.

But of course, all these products must meet the same strict technical compliance requirements as ever.

The companies that are rising best to this challenge are those which have already optimised their technical compliance processes.

It means they can be more flexible from a product perspective right now, and that has never been more important.

What longer term impacts will this crisis have on the future of compliance within the online gaming industry?

I think it will accelerate the trends we have observed over the past few years. The lockdown provides an opportunity for both operators and suppliers to evaluate and rethink approaches to compliance.

We have been advocates for a new approach to compliance for a long time now. Even before this pandemic, the move towards a dot country model of regulation has made both regulatory and technical compliance more important than ever.

Speed and a comprehensive understanding of requirements are critical. The operators and suppliers who have grown quickest have been those who best execute on this.

This crisis lays bare why we talk about how speed, flexibility and agility within compliance are so important. You need to be able to adapt to sudden shifts in the market.

The operators and suppliers who had not yet taken this lesson on board are now finally facing up to this reality.

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