Sweden’s Gambling Watchdog Bans Small House BV for Operating Without a Local License

Spelinspektionen, the entity that regulates Sweden’s gambling market, has handed the Curacao-licensed iGaming company Small House BV a ban after an investigation revealed that the operator has been targeting Swedish customers without the necessary regulatory permits.

The regulator reached this decision after finding that clients of Small House BV’s bcgame.top could choose to top up their accounts with the Swedish Krona and that its affiliates have advertised the website in Swedish. In addition, it appears that Swedish residents did not run into any barriers when attempting to register at bcgame.top. Although Spelinspektionen reached out to Small House BV, the operator did not issue a response.

Spelinspektionen’s Efforts to Tackle Illegal Gambling

Curbing illicit online gambling is one of Spelinspektionen’s core objectives as a regulatory body. This week also saw the regulator banning Hitz Gaming OÜ, with the entity’s transgressions once again boiling down to offering gambling services in Sweden despite being unlicensed. In comparison to Small House BV, however, Hitz Gaming OÜ’s own websites have allegedly been more proactive in their efforts to attract gambling enthusiasts who reside in Sweden.

While investigating the operator, Spelinspektionen revealed that the registration process on Hitz Gaming OÜ websites did not prevent Swedish users from registering, and it even included the Swedish country code as an option. A payment method (BankID) available only to Swedish residents has also been found among the deposit methods. Last but not least, some of Hitz Gaming OÜ’s affiliates marketed the operator’s websites in Swedish.

Unlike Small House BV, Hitz Gaming OÜ issued a statement in which the company argued that it no longer works with affiliates that target Sweden and that the payment system specified above is not Sweden-exclusive. Spelinspektionen did not revoke its decision, however, and further stressed that Hitz Gaming OÜ’s inclusion of the Swedish country code during registration indicates an attempt to cater to Swedish clients.

The Difficulties of Operating Legitimate iGaming Websites in Sweden

One of the reasons gambling companies might choose to operate in a given jurisdiction without a license or avoid it altogether has to do with regulation and the taxes imposed on regulated businesses. Obtaining a license is typically costly and comes with a range of safety and financial obligations that operators must meet. Sweden is no different, and the prospect of making the Swedish market more difficult to operate in was one of the core criticisms of the Swedish government’s decision to raise the country’s gambling tax from 18% to 22%.

As reported by CasinoGamesPro, the tax increase came into effect earlier this week, and many members of Sweden’s gambling industry have expressed concerns that the cut to operators’ profits would harm both them and their clients as gambling as a form of entertainment could become more costly. This, in turn, would make unlicensed websites more appealing to Swedish consumers.

Companies that have a Dutch audience might also see their costs increase. A coalition agreement reached this May could result in the Netherlands’ gaming tax seeing an increase of around 7%. As was the case in Sweden, the Dutch gambling industry expressed disapproval of the plan.