The Hon. Silvio Schembri, The Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy & innovation has announced that a motion has been presented in Parliament for the first reading of the new Gaming Bill. This bill will seek to repeal all the existing legislation and replace it with a single Act of Parliament, along with additional subsidiary legislation that will comprehensively cover gaming regulation as well as technical aspects. Also undergoing a regulatory overhaul are a series of technical directives and guidelines that are currently under consultation by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) for eventual rollout and publication by the regulator, once the Act is finalised and enforced.
“This Bill marks a major step in streamlining and encompassing the governance of all gaming services offered in and from Malta and across all channels under the competence of the MGA. The Government wants to ensure that the gaming industry continues to be run responsibly, fairly and free from criminal activity, so that the Maltese jurisdiction provides a safe and well-regulated environment where the industry can also develop and innovate”, Hon. Silvio Schembri said.
Within the Bill, the Maltese Government is laying the foundations so that the MGA has he applicable resources and powers to be able to effectively regulate the online gaming sector to protect customers through the use of evidence-based methodologies. Hon. Schembri added, “we hope to remove any red tape by increasing efficiency and flexibility for the Regulator, whilst improving the robustness of the current framework and focusing regulation on outcomes” whilst adding that the proposals within the bill will not only further enhance the outstanding reputation of the Maltese jurisdiction within the iGaming world, but it will also help to grow the industry by 4%.
The proposed framework will also play a big part in the strengthening of the MGAs stance on compliance and enforcement in regards to concurrent developments on anti-money laundering and funding of terrorism obligations. It allows the MGA to be more proactive in its decision making whilst decreasing the unnecessary regulatory burdens and strengthening supervisory capabilities.
Other key areas that have been outlined in the bill include enhancing consumer protection standards, responsible gaming measures, reporting of suspicious sports betting transactions and objective-orientated standards to encourage further innovation and development within the sector. The bill that will be presented in parliament is the result of a significant amount of public consultation, led by the MGA and leading industry stakeholders, and of course, members of the public. They have drawn on findings from technical studies, and economic and financial impact assessments. The public consultation was launched back in July 2017 and included input from all areas of the industry including 53 different local and foreign parties.
Some key points from the proposed Gaming Act include:
- Replacing the current multi-licence system with a system in which there will be two different types of licences – a Business-to-Consumer (B2C) licence and a Business-to-Business (B2B) licence – covering different types of activities across multiple distribution channels;
- Moving towards an objective-based rather than excessively prescriptive regulatory approach, to allow for innovation whilst ensuring that the regulatory objectives are attained;
- Broadening the regulatory scope to increase MGA oversight and allow for intervention where necessary and in a proportionate manner;
- Widening the MGA’s powers under the compliance and enforcement functions to better achieve the regulatory objectives, in line with concurrent developments on anti-money laundering and funding of terrorism obligations;
- Segmenting the Key Official role into various key functions within a licensed activity, requiring approval, for direct scrutiny and targeted supervisory controls, thereby raising the bar for persons of responsibility within a gaming operation;
- Strengthening the player protection framework by formalising the mediatory role of the MGA’s Player Support Unit, enshrining segregation of player funds at law and moving towards a unified self-exclusion database across both remote and land-based delivery channels;
- Introducing new and more effective processes for criminal and administrative justice, including the allocation of appeals from decisions of the Authority to the Administrative Review Tribunal and the introduction of a distinction between administrative and criminal offences;
- Introducing the concept of administration to protect an operation in distress and, if necessary, to assist the winding down of operation, thereby protecting jobs and player funds;
- Moving toward automated reporting, facilitating adherence to regulatory obligations and strengthening the Authority’s oversight;
- Bolstering the Authority’s role in the fight against manipulation of sports competitions by introducing new obligations on operators to monitor sports betting and report suspicious bets, in line with the efforts being made by the National Anti-Corruption Task Force in which the Authority also actively participates;
- Exempting B2B licensees from gaming tax, thus increasing Malta’s competitiveness as a hub for B2B activities.
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