Key points:
- Techno Offshore has been fined €1.2m ($1.32m) for its online casinos
- These websites were offering illegal games of chance
- As the operator, Techno Offshore did not hold the necessary licences from the KSA
The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Dutch Gaming Authority, has imposed a fine of €1.2m on Techno Offshore Limited for operating online casinos without the necessary licence.
Following an extensive investigation, it was found that Techno Offshore was allowing Dutch players to enter both nolimitbet.com and simplecasino.com without having a licence for the Dutch market.
The sites also conducted no visible age checks during the sign-up process and the games had autoplay and turboplay options, both of which “encourage immoderate gambling behaviour”.
The first decision against Techno Offshore was made on 23 July 2024, which stated that the operator could pay €280,000 per week for a maximum of €840,000 while the sites still committed these infractions.
As the site was still accessible by 2025, the KSA has imposed a basic fine of €600,000 and a fine representing 10% of the operator's turnover, which converts to an administrative fine of €1.03m.
Good to know: The basic fine included multiple fines of €75,000 for charging inactivity fees, accepting cryptocurrency, offering autoplay options and having no age verification systems
Michel Groothuizen, Chairman of the KSA, said: “Licensed providers in the Netherlands must adhere to all kinds of rules to protect the player against gambling addiction.
“With illegal providers, we often see that the prevention of risky gambling behavior is not taken into account in any way, for example by not using age verification, enabling payments with crypto or a lack of playing limits.
“We take tough action against these kinds of parties, because they lure players to illegal offers and players there are insufficiently protected.”
The KSA also removed around 20 apps from storefronts since the start of the year, many of which used pre-existing logos to redirect customers to unlisenced websites.
