Growth is slowing but the regulator says the market is meeting expectations. 

The Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has reported that the growth of the Netherlands’ regulated online market, which opened in October 2021, is levelling off. The number of active licences to operate on the market has grown from an initial 10 on its launch to 27, following the launch of LeoVegas.

Gross gaming result (BSR), as the KSA refers to net gambling revenue, has grown with the expansion of the market. However, the latest figures show that the growth appears to be stagnating. BSR for the 12 months from August 2022 to July 2023 was €1.3bn. Revenue grew by 33 per cent from August 2022 to January 2023 but by 8 per cent from January 2023 to August 2023.

The KSA said that although growth is slowing the market is developing as expected as it matures.

KSA Chairman René Jansen said: “Our fifth monitoring report shows that the gaming market continues to grow, even if it is levelling off. This means that the market is developing as expected. The continued growth ensures increasing responsibility among providers. 

“The KSA continues to strictly monitor that Dutch players can gamble in a safe market with sufficient attention to addiction prevention and insight into possible problem gaming behaviour. Duty of care and addiction prevention are a crucial part of our monitoring.”

In July, the Netherlands introduced a ban on untargeted gambling adverts, which could have an impact on revenue in the next report. Meanwhile, the Dutch government has announced that it will consider amending gambling legislation after the KSA called for reforms to grant it more powers for monitoring. earlier this month a report recommended imposing mandatory gambling limits in the Netherlands.

The report suggests that the Netherlands is currently meeting its channelisation targets, estimating that 93 per cent of players used regulated sites, up by 1 per cent from six months earlier.