Sweden fines Roar Vegas and Glitnor Services

Spelinspektionen has given Roar Vegas a “remark” and fined it SEK8 million (£617,044/€737,234/$795,303) for a duty of care failure.

Following a supervision check of Roar Vegas’ operation, Spelinspektionen stated the company failed to intervene quickly enough to curb excessive gambling behaviours of three customers. Two of these were classed as younger gamblers in the 18-24 age group.

While Roar Vegas did intervene with “effective measures” according to the regulator, it holds the view the operator should have done so earlier than it did.

Roar Vegas disputes the fine

Roar Vegas said it had not breached its duty of care and that the duty of care work in the three cases in question functioned appropriately, ending in a result that saw the customers’ excessive gambling cease.

The company told the regulator it believes it had been unclear for them as licensees how they should fulfil their obligations. It stated there are no clear regulations on when more intrusive measures should be taken.

However, the Swedish gambling authority noted for the assessed cases, customers had logged in several days in a row, had long login times and lost deposits in a short time after funding their accounts. All of these are indicators of problem gambling in the regulator’s view.

The regulator noted that, as two of the examined cases had younger players, Roar Vegas should have raised their risk profile quicker and taken more “intrusive” measures sooner.

Roar Vegas pointed to several measures it has taken to improve gamblers’ protection since that check-up. These include additional pop-up high deposit limit warning messages on the website, clear guidelines on the handling of high-risk customers and a cap on deposit limits, as well as fixed limits on bet and loss size.

Regardless, Roar Vegas has been given a “remark” by the regulator and ordered to pay the SEK8 million fee.

Glitnor Services fined and warned

Stockholm-based Glitnor Services was also found to have breached its duty of care and has been fined $2.7 million.

Spelinspektionen conducted a supervision check-up of the operator and reported it did not help 10 of 12 gamblers that were examined as part of the check.

The regulator found that three customers, combined, had deposited $218,831 per month. All examined customers were playing several times a week and, in some cases, for many days in a row and for long periods, such as placing bets for eleven hours continuously in one case.

Spelinspektionen stated 10 customers had engaged in excessive gambling and found the measures taken by Glitnor Services, including messaging the customer, had no visible impact. The regulator also stated Glitnor Services had shortcomings in its monitoring and follow-up processes.

The operator told the regulator it believes it has not failed its duty of care. It noted in all cases reviewed, it had taken action.

Roar Vegas and Glitnor Services dispute required action

Similarly to Roar Vegas, Glitnor Services stated its opinion that there is no requirement under law for the implementation of “more intrusive measures” beyond the actions it had taken. It told the regulator it believes it is sufficient enough that a player reduces their gambling and that there is nothing that says it must suspend players.

In response to this argument, Spelinspektionen wrote in its ruling: “According to statements from the administrative court, it can be considered to follow directly from Chapter 14, Section 1 of the Gambling Act that a licensee has an obligation to take the measures required as soon as necessary to counteract excessive gambling at an individual level.”

Spelinspektionen added that this “includes various forms of restrictions and access restrictions”.

Spelinspektionen has fined Glitnor Services $2.7 million and given the operator a warning.

In February, Spelinspektionen reported that gambling revenue in Sweden increased 2.65% year-on-year during 2024.

Total gambling revenue in the 12 months to 31 December 2024 hit SEK27.85 billion. This surpassed the SEK27.13 billion reported in Sweden in the previous year.