Germany’s gambling regulator has secured court support for an international payment block, in a case indicative of the strict nature of the country’s gambling regulation.
The Joint Gambling Authority of the States (GGL) had blocked an unnamed payment provider based in Switzerland, asserting that the firm was known to be facilitating payments to illegal gambling websites.
This decision now has the legal backing of the Halle Administrative Court, located in the state of Saxony-Anhalt. Payments blocks usually require prior notification of specific gambling offers under German law, but the GGL made its case that the extension of this particular block was necessary.
The regulator cited what it calls ‘the widespread involvement of the payment service provider concerned in illegal gambling’. It also asserted that the extension of the block has enabled it to respond ‘quickly and effectively’ to previously unknown involvement in illegal gambling.
Ronald Benter, GGL Board Member, said: “This further success in the use of payment blocking shows that national borders are no obstacle to the enforcement of gambling law.
“We do not tolerate uncooperative behaviour by payment service providers. Companies that do not comply with the applicable laws must expect consequences.”
The German gambling sector has been operating under a new regulatory format since July 2021, overseen by the GGL since January 2023. The regulator was created by federal legislation approved by all 16 of Germany’s states (lander).
Two years in, the GGL states that the recent Halle court decision is a sign that it is ‘successful internationally in combating unlawful activities’. It added that it encourages all payment service providers to comply with legal requirements and work with its regulatory remit.
Gambling stakeholders maintain long-held concerns about the state of Germany’s regulations and licensing conditions, however.
Speaking at the Payment Expert Summit last month, for example, Roger Redfearn-Tyrzyk, VP Global Gaming at IDnow, stated that Germany was ‘the best example of how to make a fantastic market’, but that regulatory restrictions have meant this has not been achieved.
