It seems that the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) is following the example of the UKGC and it is about to tighten the rules its licensees conform to.
Earlier this week, the MGA officials announced that they have told two of its licensees – Bet Service Group Limited and World of Bets EU Ltd, to cease operations. Back in January 2019, the former had its license suspended.
The licenses of the other two operators – Betixx Ltd. And Morpheus Games have been suspended.
The two licensees that have had their licenses terminated were ordered to inform their existing players and do not register new ones. At the time of writing, the gamebet.net, the website operated by the Bet Service Group Ltd. is still active.
As for Betixx Ltd, it is a German bookmaker. The Morpheus Games is in the online gambling niche. Both operators were instructed to stop providing their products and services until further notice. They also need to submit the required documents and wait for MGA’s final verdict. Customers of the four operators have been asked to contact the MGA in case they have pending payouts or unused account balance.
The public was not notified of the reason for licenses’ suspension/ termination as the MGA investigations might be compromised. Rumour has it that the MGA crackdown on iGaming operators has been prompted by the Norwegian gambling officials. Earlier in February, the Norwegian Gambling Authority sent warnings to six Maltese licensees whose services were deemed illegal on Norwegian territory.
Currently, only Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto are allowed to provide gambling services to Norwegian players. The fact that more and more international casino operators are eyeing the affluent Norwegian market made legislators take actions against the unlicensed ones.
The companies said to be illegally targeting Norwegian players were the Gaming Innovation Group, Betsson Group, L & L Europe Players, Lucky Dino Gaming Ltd., Kindred Group, and Co-Gaming Ltd. The warning letters were sent to both the operators' officials and the Maltese gambling authorities.
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