Kansspelautoriteit, the Dutch gaming authority, has emphasised the importance of compliance with the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft) with the publication of a past designation for Holland Casino.
In 2019, Holland Casino was handed a designation by the KSA as an investigation discovered the operator “did not properly comply” with certain Wwft provisions. The KSA concluded that Holland Casino did not “sufficiently check the gambling behaviour of the players and the origin of the money used”.
An instruction was issued by the KSA at the time to Holland Casino demanding the firm become compliant with the Wwft, which the authority said the operator “complied with all the given guidelines within the time limits set at the time”.
The KSA noted that the publication of the designation and the decision on the objection “took into account” the decision of the College van Beroep voor het bedrijfsleven – Administrative Court of Appeal for Trade and Industry – made on 26 March 2024.
The authority stated that the CBB’s ruling makes the designation “irrevocable” so therefore it is made public, alongside “the decision on objection that was directed against the designation”.
With Holland Casino’s appeal partially upheld by the CBB, the KSA said it has “led to an adjustment of the instruction to be made public and of the decision on objection taken on it, in the sense that parts of it that are the subject of the upholding of the appeal will not be made public”.
In addition, the authority claimed that “the disclosure decision itself will not be made public, because it is subject to the duty of confidentiality of the Wwft”.
The KSA added that the designation’s publication is important as it makes the wider public aware of enforcement actions from the authority and the reasons for it, helps other providers become aware of such conduct that could lead to enforcement, as well as discourages other providers from violating the AML regulations.
Earlier this month, the KSA announced the establishment of a Duty of Care Online department to improve the supervision of online gambling operators’ duty of care.
