Betway and Mandalorian fined over bonus offers in Sweden

Swedish gambling regulator Spelinspektionen has handed six-figure fines to Betway and Mandalorian Technologies after finding them both in breach of regulations related to bonus offers in the country.

Licensed operators in Sweden can only offer players a bonus when they first sign up to their online gambling platforms, but Betway and Mandalorian were found to have offered bonuses on several occasions after the initial sign-up.

In response to the findings, Spelinspektionen has now issued Betway with a fine of SEK5m (£406,812/€465,183/$521,224) and warned the operator about its conduct. Mandalorian has also been fined SEK9m and given an official warning.

“The main purpose of the new gambling regulation, which came into force on January 1, 2019, is to strengthen consumer protection and reduce the negative effects of gambling,” Spelinspektionen said in a statement.

“The limitation on bonuses is contained in the law to reduce social and economic damages and problem gambling. The Spelinspektionen will therefore continue to focus on supervision of this area.”

Spelinspektionen wrote to all licensees in February to warn them against offering bonuses to existing customers. The regulator noted “some compliance” from the two operators, but its assessment was that further measures were required in order to achieve full compliance.

The regulator defines bonuses as a form of discount of similar financial incentive directly linked to a game on an operator’s website.

Betway is licensed to operate in the Swedish market via its Betway.se site, while Mandalorian offers igaming services through both its NoAccountCasino.com and PrankCasino.com domains.