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The New Zealand lender Kiwibank has decided to provide its customers with the chance to voluntarily block gambling transactions as part of its efforts to help the Government tackle increasing online gambling rates. For the time being, it is the first bank in the country to offer such a block that is known to have helped some people take control of their compulsive gambling habits. Before making an announcement of the decision to offer the voluntary gambling transaction block, Kiwibank said it saw an increase in customers’ spending was registered…

According to new data provided by researchers and associated with federal pandemic payments, the Northern Territory of Australia saw local gamblers boosted their poker machine losses to a record amount of money following the coronavirus pandemic outbreak and the subsequent shutdowns last year. Reports show that the clubs, hotels and two casinos in the Northern Territory were ordered to switch off all of their poker machines in the period from March 23rd to June 5th, 2020 to respond to the public health emergency related to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, once…

Gambling operators, which have been enjoying a profit increase during the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns, have left the National Health Service (NHS) to deal with gambling addiction, the head of the mental health service in England said. The mental health director for NHS England, Claire Murdoch, explained that it was time for gambling companies to face a mandatory tax that could be used as funding for more problem gambling treatment services in the country. The official of the National Health Service criticised the voluntary system that provided the gambling sector with…

The Murdoch-owned media corporation Fox has turned to court, filing an arbitration claim against the gambling giant Flutter Entertainment. The legal dispute with one of the biggest gambling operators on a global scale is over the value of its stake in FanDuel, a quickly-growing sports betting platform. Fox is provided with the opportunity to purchase an 18.5% stake in July this year and, according to the company, it should be able to do so at the same price [aid by Flutter Entertainment in December 2020. The deal valued FanDuel at…

The coronavirus pandemic in Australia has helped foreign sports betting operators take advantage of the situation and gain market value worth tens of billions of dollars during the past year. This information has fuelled some calls for new stricter regulatory rules to be imposed on sports betting advertising. The owner of Sportsbet, global gambling giant Flutter Entertainment, managed to gain approximately AU$30 billion in value during the coronavirus pandemic outbreak. The company registered a 46% surge in its turnover, as well as a 59% increase in its revenue in Australia…

About a year after the use of credit cards for gambling transactions was made illegal in the UK, Paddy Power became the first betting company that ceased accepting credit card bets from its Irish customers. In an email to its users, on April 1st, the bookmaker informed them that it had made the decision to stop accepting bets funded with credit card transactions as part of the company’s commitment to stick to safer gambling. For the time being, none of the other top gambling companies has implemented similar measures. Debit…

According to a recent study that has put more fuel into calls for stricter regulation of in-game items, so-called loot boxes are clearly linked to problem gambling. Researchers analysed a total of 13 studies into the behaviour of gamblers to spent real money on loot boxes – a feature available in video games allowing players to purchase randomised awards, often without previously knowing what they would get in return. The rewards can help players make faster progress in the game or enhance their characters by making changes in their appearance…

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has announced its new 3-year Corporate Strategy to set out the regulator’s focus as it is still protecting the players and the wider public from possible gambling-related harm. The new Strategy has been released alongside the regulator’s Business Plan for 2021 to 2022. The UKGC shared that it will be delivered through five priority areas, including ensuring a fairer gambling market and more informed players; keeping criminal activity out of the UK gambling industry; improving gambling regulation; protecting underage and vulnerable individuals from gambling-related harm…

The Star Casino is taking a Singaporean billionaire to court after he fled the country after falling into a massive AU$40-million debt to the gambling operators in just three days. According to allegations, the well-known high-roller Yew Choy Wong dishonoured a blank cheque following a five-day losing streak while he played baccarat at The Star Gold Coast in July 2018. As revealed by the documents that the gambling company filed in the Queensland Supreme Court, the VIP player came to the casino after being brought there by a marketing junket.…

Denise Coates, the boss of the leading UK gambling operator bet365, has continued her string of record-breaking salary and dividend payments after receiving almost half a billion pounds in 2020. This took her total pay from 2016 until now to almost £1.3 billion. The gambling operator took an unusual delay when filing its accounts at Companies House but still, it became clear that the company’s highest-paid director – Ms Coates – was granted a total of £421-million salary and dividend payment last year. This makes an hourly payment of £48,000…