All Dutch operators ordered to stop cashback bonuses

As reported by CasinoNieuws, the KSA sent a letter to all Dutch igaming licensees which made clear that cashback bonuses are banned in the Netherlands as they can encourage “excessive participation”.

The letter pointed out that bonuses are covered by advertising laws, and therefore bonuses may not encourage “excessive” gambling.

“De Kansspelautoriteit has recently received signals that there are online licence holders who (want to) offer players a loyalty reward in the form of a cashback on their website,” the letter said. “This is not allowed, because a cashback bonus is a form of advertising that leads to excessive participation.

“A cashback bonus has a game stimulating effect. Offering a bonus where a player gets back part of his loss contributes to taking more risk. In addition, the bonus may reduce the perceived risk of gambling among players who are vulnerable.”

The regulator told licensees that they must confirm in writing that they have stopped offering cashback bonuses by 5 December.

Dutch igaming regulatory activities

Within the past week, there have been a number of other major events concerning Dutch gambling regulation besides the announcement on cashback bonuses. Yesterday, de Kansspelautoriteit handed Toto Online a fine of €400,000 (£343,793/$415,307) for targeting advertising at young adults in the country.

The KSA said Toto Online – owned by Nederlandse Loterij – sent messages to its entire customer base between 1 October 2021, the date the country opened its legal online gambling market, and 1 February of this year.

The ruling came after the KSA last week also took action against a number of operators, ruling they had broken various rules. KSA said that the offences took place in the run-up to the 2022 World Cup.

Also last week, the Dutch government released a 2021 memo revealing that a number of online operators were under investigation for unpaid taxes covering the period before the Netherlands regulated online gambling.