Illegal gambling site NetX Betting receives heavy fine from the KSA
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31 Oct 2024 •
Reading time: 2 minutes The Dutch Gaming Authority (KSA) has imposed a hefty fine of €675,000 on NetX Betting Limited. The reason? NetX offered online gambling services without a license via their websites pferdewetten.de and betbird.com. The KSA has been pursuing illegal gambling sites for some time now, and this action makes it clear that they will not simply get away with unlicensed gambling in the Netherlands.
Strict action against illegal gambling remains a priority for the KSA
It turns out that NetX did not comply with the rules by operating on the Dutch gambling market without a license. The fine started at €600,000, but due to aggravating circumstances the amount increased further.
Incidentally, this is not the first time that the KSA has warned NetX; they have previously been ordered to stop their activities in the Netherlands, but apparently that did not have the desired effect.
Other illegal providers also receive fines
NetX is not the only one to receive a fine from the KSA this month. BlockDance BV must also pay a fine for similar activities without a permit, and Winbet is facing a fine of €280,000 per week. Winbet must stop their illegal gambling sites, otherwise the fine will simply continue. The KSA clearly shows that they are determined to take action against all illegal gambling providers.
KSA chairman emphasizes the importance of player protection
Michel Groothuizen, the chairman of the KSA, explained why they are taking such a strict approach to these types of illegal providers.
“Dutch players simply have to be able to play safely. That is why we are tackling this very hard. What we often see is that these illegal providers do not care about the players and their safety. They mainly think about their own profit, and that is at the expense of the player.”
Groothuizen also mentioned a number of practices that they have seen at NetX.
“We saw that players who do not use their account for a long time receive a kind of ‘fine’ from the provider. If they do not play for a while, they have to pay €5 per month. A player is actually punished if he does not participate in the (illegal) games that they offer. That of course makes no sense and really goes way too far.”