LeoVegas COO: Predictability necessary for sustainable regulated market
LeoVegas COO Marten Forste believes some degree of predictability is necessary for a regulated market to attract operators – something he thinks is currently missing in Sweden.
Speaking during a ‘Future of Gaming’ panel at the CasinoBeats Malta Digital summit, Forste explained that LeoVegas searches for certain characteristics when looking for expansion into new markets.
He said: “Part of our strategy is to grow in regulated markets, so we as a company like the fact that a market is regulated.
“For that to work, there has to be a certain degree of predictability.”
Forste went on to explain the differences in the Gambling Commission and Swedish Gambling Authority’s approaches to regulating their respective markets.
“The UK regulator has shown predictability in the measures that have been imposed, which serve a purpose,” Forste commented.
“I think in Sweden it has been a bit disappointing so far because the changes we are now seeing are not based on facts.
“It is actually allowing for non-licensed operators to take a bit of the market while it is limiting licensed casino operators.”
Forste believes new Swedish regulation focuses unfairly on the country’s online casino market; hinting that this could stem from the state’s involvement in sports betting.
He explained: “New regulation is only impacting casino when we don’t see activity has increased in that market.
“It is also a bit disturbing to see we have businesses that are owned by the state and mainly focused on sports betting, which in this case are not being impacted at all in all of this.”
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