First Swedish Casino Licenses Issued for Suppliers

On the 17th of March, Sweden issued its first B2B supplier licenses as part of its new gambling regulations. Although the Enhanced Game Regulation bill is still being discussed in parliament, 60 applications for a Swedish casino license have been submitted since the process was opened on the 1st of March, 2022. This marks an exciting stage in Sweden’s gambling industry.

Soon only suppliers with a valid Spelinspektionen license will be able to work with operators in Sweden, which is part of the Swedish government’s effort to prevent gambling at unlicensed operators. However, amidst the change in the Swedish government and previous issues with re-regulation of the Swedish gambling act, some operators are concerned regarding the industry’s future.

The New Swedish Gambling Act – Background Information

These new developments are part of an ongoing re-regulation of the Swedish gambling act. It first began in 2019, when operators were required to have a license from the Swedish gambling authority to operate. That broke up the existing monopoly of Svenska Spel and allowed many private operators to enter the market, such as the best online casino for Swedish players.

Despite this, many players have continued to gamble at unlicensed online casinos. That is partly due to unauthorized operators looking like licensed ones and the controversial laws, such as the SEK5,000 weekly deposit cap for online games. These events have necessitated a re-evaluation of the current laws and increased efforts to channel players into legal sites.

Current Swedish Gambling License Owners

Currently, the Enhanced Game Regulation Bill is in the committee phase, and the law won’t be in effect until the 1st of July. Nevertheless, the requirements for a Swedish gambling license were released last November, and with an influx of applications, the SGA decided to issue several licenses in advance. Below, you can find some of the most-recently licensed suppliers:

1. Skill on Net
2. Synot Games
3. Norrköping AB
4. Inspired
5. Finnplay
6. Play’n GO
7. Nolimit City

These licenses last five years, with requirements including a SEK120,000 fee and the company having headquarters in Sweden or the European Economic Area. Sweden increased the online casino license cost to cover the gambling authority’s application expenses. Regardless, this will have minimal effect on the competition, and many suppliers are ecstatic that the Swedish iGaming license introduced them to a new market.

The Swedish Gambling Authority’s Hopes for the Future

The Spelinspektionen was created in 2019 to oversee all gambling activities and ensure the laws are strictly followed. That is why it is directly involved with and continues working on implementing Sweden’s new bill, despite the change in government. It is believed that introducing these new licenses will help prevent gambling at unlicensed operators.

The authority is also entering a new one-year term with a seven-member board. While most of the members retain their positions, there has been one change in that Per Håkansson is now chairman. Below, you can find a list of all the current members and their positions on the board:

Camilla Rosenberg will be retaining her leadership position as General Director. As she has held this position since 2017, her experience will be vital in the successful implementation of the new laws. The board also reports directly to the minister of financial markets Niklas Wykman. It is a well-coordinated organisation that works closely with the government, ensuring it can adapt to any changes.

“Unlicensed game operators must not be able to use suppliers who manufacture, provide, install and/or change game software for game operators who have a license in Sweden” – Spelinspektionen

While the Swedish gambling authority is optimistic about these changes, operators are somewhat sceptical. While it may help, they believe unlicensed casinos avoid targeting Swedish customers directly by not having their sites in Swedish or using Swedish krona. As such, there are concerns that a Swedish casino license may not curb these issues.

Trends and the Future of the Swedish Gambling Industry

Aside from the Swedish iGaming license being introduced, this bill also added adjusted moderation for advertisements. While the exact requirements are ambiguous, casinos must ensure their advertisements acknowledge that different gambling games have various risks. Unfortunately, casinos are still only allowed to have welcome bonuses, and gambling’s negative image in the country means that many Swedish banks refuse to work with non-Swedish operators.

Another one of the major concerns is that regulatory costs are too high for smaller operators, leading to a monopoly of big ones. However, whether these big operators will renew their licenses is unclear, especially with the increased online casino license cost. When combined with the issues above and the change in government, the industry will be faced with many challenges, especially considering the newest gambling reforms.

Swedish Gambling License FAQ

Before wrapping up our Swedish new licenses article, we will answer all your pressing questions. You can learn more about the Swedish gambling license itself and the requirements needed for it. Alternatively, you can find some more information on the Spelinspektionen or learn about the current gambling laws in Sweden.