Malta regulator cancels ASAP Italia’s licence

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has cancelled ASAP Italia’s gaming licence and ordered the skill games provider to cease operations in the country with immediate effect.

ASAP Italia – which is not connected to Catena Media – has been directed to suspend all skill-based gaming activities carried out under the licence, with immediate effect from today (June 17). The operator is also required to publish a message on its website to notify users of the ruling.

The decision applies to only to websites operated under, or associated with, ASAP Italia's Malta licence.

Players with outstanding payments due from ASAP Italia have been told to contact the MGA with their name, address, date of birth, telephone number, a copy of their passport or ID card, ASAP Italia username, a description of the product in question and a screenshot of any pending balance or cash outs.

The MGA has said it will not release any further information on the ruling at this stage so as not to compromise any investigations that may need to be performed by the regulator or other authorities.

Catena Media acquired a number of sports news and lead generation assets from ASAP Italia in June 2018, though this did not include the Malta-licensed portion of the business. That remained under control of ASAP Italia's management.

Last week, the MGA also moved to rescind online raffle operator Wish Me Luck’s licence, but again opted to disclose its reasons for the move.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Catena Media owned the Malta-licensed portion of ASAP Italia's licence. While Catena acquired a range of assets from the business in June 2018, this did not include the Malta-licensed component. Accordingly, Catena has no involvement with the ASAP Italia business covered in the story.