Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has imposed a €37m ($41m) fine on EOD Code SRL for offering online gambling in the Netherlands without a licence, describing it as its highest penalty for illegal gambling provision to date.
The Dutch regulator said its employees were able to gamble on several company websites without encountering measures preventing participation from the Netherlands.
Its initial investigation focused on Instantcasino. Further enquiries identified another 11 websites involved in the unlicensed offering, including skyhills.com, slotmonster.com, betiro.com and betblast.com.
The remaining sites were fastslots.com, goldenpanda.com, sambaslots.com, winningz.com, incognitocasino.com, foxygold.com and luckypays.io.
EOD Code had previously received an order subject to periodic penalty payments over its activities. The €37m administrative fine represents a separate enforcement measure.
KSA identified several aggravating circumstances across the websites, including the absence of visible age verification. It also highlighted the availability of cryptocurrency and anonymous payment methods, which it said facilitated money laundering.
The regulator chose a revenue-related penalty rather than relying on its standard fine amounts. It said its estimate of income generated from Dutch players justified a higher sanction.
KSA also emphasised that its action against illegal gambling extends beyond administrative fines. Its wider approach includes cooperation with payment service providers, hosting companies, banks and major technology businesses.
The fine follows other recent KSA interventions involving both licensed and unlicensed businesses. Recently, for example, the regulator reprimanded 711 over requirements to wager deposited funds before withdrawal and issued guidance on verifying player payment accounts after identifying weaknesses in operators’ checks.
KSA can use a revenue-based fine when it considers standard penalties disproportionate to the income generated by an illegal offering
