Danish Gambling Authority Putting The Oversight Back In Regulation

Danish Gambling Authority Putting The Oversight Back In Regulation

On the international gambling stage, Denmark recently has been spending significant time in the spotlight.

An April 2022 review of the policies and procedures around safer gambling turned up a list of concerning trends that regulators have since been working hard to address. By and large, operators were found to be lacking in their overall efforts to protect their customers from gambling-related harm. The subsequent crackdown on behavior sets a shining example for other regulators seeking to implement international best practices in their local operations.

Let’s run through some of the work being done by regulators in Denmark and some of the tools they’re using to help them succeed.

Danish gambling regulator hard at work

The Danish Gambling Authority (DGA), known locally as Spillemyndigheden, is the independent government agency that regulates and oversees the industry in Denmark. The office was created in 2012 as Denmark began implementing its modernized gambling legislation.

The DGA’s primary objective is to ensure that gambling in Denmark is conducted in a fair and responsible manner that complies with the law. Of all the gaming regulators around the world, perhaps none has been more proactive in its work to make the industry safer and more sustainable in recent years than the DGA.

The agency publishes regularly updated guidance for operators, incrementally tightening controls on things like deposit limits and bonuses. It targets illegal gambling websites and the affiliates that promote them too, including things like skins betting and social gambling. The DGA has even called for direct collaboration with Google and Facebook to help root out illegal gambling at its digital source.

Earlier this year, the DGA additionally announced that it will take control of the country’s sports integrity program, StopMatchFixing, to help report and combat gambling-related impropriety. This measure, like the others, is aimed at protecting customers, players, and the gambling industry itself.

Diligent enforcement creates challenges for operators

The work of the DGA sets a fine example for other global gambling officials that seek to exert similar control over their local industry. But the complicated regulatory environment certainly makes Denmark a challenging jurisdiction for operators to succeed in.

The licensing process is intensely cumbersome, with more than 750 individual requirements for online casino and sports betting. Most operators take at least six months to complete the documentation, with the majority of applicants requiring upwards of a year. There are dozens of boxes to tick, and leaving anything unfinished can create unnecessary delays and unwanted friction with regulators.

The heavy lifting doesn’t end with licensure, either.

Strict oversight from regulators like the DGA means that operators must be perpetually diligent in their documentation and record keeping. That obviously includes transparent financial reporting, but it also requires careful tracking of all individual customer interactions too. Every advertisement must be logged and retained, whether it be print media, digital marketing, or direct communication. Even the smallest technical changes to the product must be documented too.

The compliance workload in Denmark is substantial. And the cost for failures can be severe. The DGA has not been shy about wielding its authority to hand out penalties to operators, spanning the range from small fines all the way up to license revocation.

Third-party solutions like SG:certified streamline the process

Gambling stakeholders are generally eager to enlist third-party consultants to fill gaps in their own organizational knowledge.

Independent integrity partners are a requirement of licensing in some jurisdictions, for example, and external marketing agencies that work with gambling companies have no shortage of clients these days. Few if any operators are performing their own in-house KYC and AML work. Geolocation is often outsourced too.

The fact of the matter is that licensure and universal compliance are just as important -- arguably more important. And simply put, not every operator has the resources or the capability to navigate the daunting regulatory path on their own. Complying with all the rules requires the creation of robust systems and redundancies across their entire business, particularly in tightly controlled markets.

Companies like SG:certified have worked hard to streamline the regulatory process in jurisdictions around the world, including in Denmark. Their compliance dashboard was built as an all-in-one platform for operators to track their journey from application to licensure to launch and beyond.

Using a knowledgeable third party like SG:certified for compliance matters helps operators accelerate their timelines, allowing them to achieve their ultimate goal of generating revenue more quickly. An easy-to-understand scoring system lets them see exactly which areas need attention as they work to build a business that’s tailored to comply with the rules of each market they serve.

Regulators have also found the SG:certified platform to be a powerful tool to help track licensure requirements and compliance for the operators they oversee. For as complicated as the rules are for operators to follow, it’s the gaming officials who actually have to write and enforce them. Regulators have found that the ability to interface with operators’ processes directly on the SG:certified platform has given them a clearer picture of the safety and sustainability of their local gambling industry.

Operators and regulators interested in a free demo of the SG:certified platform can schedule a time with the team here.