According to multiple media outlets, Blockdance BV and Small House BV – two of the companies which make up BC.Game – have been declared bankrupt. 

While the bankruptcy has not been confirmed by BC.Game, the company has confirmed its involvement in a legal dispute in the Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao, where it holds a gambling licence, initiated by several of its users.

Despite being faced with a difficult financial situation should the club’s main sponsor become bankrupt, Leicester City has come out in support of the operator due to receiving “the strongest assurances”. 

“We have been and continue to be in regular discussions with BC.Game with regard to an active legal case in Curaçao,” a Leicester City spokesperson said.

“BC.Game have provided the club with the strongest assurances that they are actively appealing this case, and that the process which has been initiated in Curaçao is administrative in nature and has not arisen due to any concerns with their financial standing. 

“BC.Game has further assured us that they have no issues with liquidity and that they remain fully committed to meeting their ongoing contractual and financial obligations, including to the club, and that this case will not impact on BC.Game’s continuing international operations.”

BC.Game issued a statement in response to allegations of bankruptcy in which it addressed the legal case in Curaçao. The platform has been accused of misconduct by its customers, who claim that they incurred losses due to system issues.

“We strongly disagree with the court’s recent rulings and will vigorously appeal the decision, as we believe it failed to adequately consider key facts,” a BC.GAME statement read.

The firm states that it has found ‘several inconsistencies’ in the case and that the allegations lack any substantial evidence. It adds that many claims fail to hold up to legal and technical scrutiny and rely on unverified statements.

The statement continued: “BC.GAME is confident in our ability to demonstrate compliance and uphold our reputation as a legitimate operator in the industry.”

Leicester City’s sponsorship with the cryptocurrency casino operator has already received some criticism – along with several other crypto-PL clubs brand deals – due to the fact their services remain unavailable to UK players.

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The decision came after a judgement against Cyberluck by the Joint Appeals Court of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba in 2022, which ordered the master licensee to pay outstanding winnings to two players a sublicensee had failed to pay. The higher court has now found that Cyberluck has no grounds for appeal. 

The development will be felt across the region, with it likely to force master licensees to tighten their grip on the actions of sublicensees. It epitomises a new era for Curaçao, which recently emphasised the need for operators to have a presence on the island and ensure they are in touch with developments there.

Significantly, the ruling came from the Supreme Court of the Netherlands, which is the highest court in all constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, including Curaçao.

Additionally, the decision was made during a period of regulatory transformation for Curaçao. In July, the portal for B2B and B2C gaming firms to apply for Curaçao licensing reopened for the first time since its previous closure on 30 April. 

That opening of the application process makes up a key part of a new era for the regulatory framework in the jurisdiction. 

At the time, Aideen Shortt, advisor to the Curaçao Gaming Control Board, revealed to CasinoBeats that “it means guaranteed continuity of business”. 

She added: “All of the sub-licensees had the opportunity, and had this six-month timeline in which they could make an application on the portal. And in doing so, they locked in the ability to get grandfathered through when the lock gets enacted.

“That closed on 30 April and with that, we had high expectations but we actually were completely surprised. We have 741 licence applications. So we were expecting a few hundred, we had hoped for a higher number and we got 741 – which is just absolutely fantastic.” 

The new framework was also welcomed by 500.Casino COO Christoffer Andersson who stated: “It has been relatively smooth sailing for us, what Curaçao is asking for their ‘2.0’ licence is something we have already been applying for a long time.

“At the end of the day, it is still a process to renew and fill in a load of paperwork.”

He added that he “believes it is good to keep the regulations on a decent level, but without restricting players or operators”.

Andersson is now confident that Curaçao will benefit from “a better reputation because of these changes, and several bad apples will not continue to operate under a Curaçao licence”.

The urgency for Curaçao to eradicate the presence of bad actors was elevated in June as a political dispute in the country saw a new tax treaty between Malta and Curaçao delayed. 

Jeopardy over the tax agreement, which had previously been agreed in 2015 came from the NSC, the opposition party in Curaçao and largely stemmed from fears over tax avoidance.

The post Curaçao master licence holders responsible for sublicensees rules supreme court  appeared first on CasinoBeats.

She had recently shared the stage with UK Gambling Commission CEO, Andrew Rhodes, having praised her fellow regulator and underpinned the importance of collaboration and discussions between different regions and jurisdictions. 

“We are very different as jurisdictions, but we have massive commonalities as well and so it’s the common ground where we can really work together and collectively it’s in all of our interests to make the industry better that there’s some sort of collaboration and just making it good for everybody. 

“The two frameworks and the two regions are obviously very different but it really stood out just watching that discussion, that the sharing of ideas, the sharing of conversation is going to be so beneficial to the industry.

“It’s not like we’re eating each other’s lunch. It’s more that, you know, it’s more ‘let’s make the industry overall better for the good of us all’.”

Shortt’s interview with CasinoBeats came just off the back of the April 30 licence application deadline in Curaçao, a deadline that was cited by Shortt as being vital for the region. 

Providing more information, she said: “On April 30, the portal for applications closed. So we had a deadline that we started taking applications in November and it was shut on April 30. 

“What this means is that all of the sub-licenses had the opportunity, and had this six month timeline in which they could make an application on the portal. And in doing so, they locked in the ability to get grandfathered through when the lock gets enacted. So it means guaranteed continuity of business. 

“That closed on April 30 and with that, we had high expectations but we actually were completely surprised. We have 741 licence applications. So we were expecting a few hundred, we had hoped for a higher number and we got 741 – which is just absolutely fantastic.” 

With the potential for tightening regulations, there is always the potential for an exodus of licence holders. However, Shortt is unfazed by this, stating that the regulator “welcomes the exodus of bad actors”.

She continued: “If somebody wants to leave Curacao now when the jurisdiction is tidying itself up, that speaks volumes. So our viewpoint is that a jurisdiction is about not just the law, the regulator, but also the operators, the suppliers, all the ancillary services. So our legislation has been drafted with that in mind that it has to work. 

“With regards to the April 30 deadline, if I can come back to that again, that means that sublicenses can no longer apply as sublicenses. So what we’re going to see, what’s going to be interesting and is something that is really important, is that the master licences will no longer be renewed.” 

Looking ahead to when the portal reopens for new applications, she revealed that it will be a slightly new framework. However, much of it will be the same. 

She added that the body will be holding every applicant to the same levels of due diligence, including areas such as information requirements. These requirements will be “standard” for licensee hopefuls, regardless of how or when an application arrives.

The post Aideen Shortt on a new era for Curaçao Gaming regulation appeared first on CasinoBeats.

The provider’s expansion comes as a result of Curaçao’s revised licensing process laid out by the Curaçao Gaming Control Board, suggesting that amidst regulatory changes, “operators and suppliers need infrastructure solutions they can rely on”. 

Michael Tobin, Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Continent 8 Technologies, stated: “We have been powering operators and suppliers in regulated jurisdictions for 25 years, providing compliant hosting solutions, globally. Thanks to our experience, regulatory knowledge, and market-leading solutions, we have become the trusted infrastructure partner to the industry.

“Our move into Curaçao comes at a time when operators and suppliers need infrastructure solutions they can rely on, and this is exactly what we have built our name and reputation on.”

Both existing and new operators and suppliers will be able to access the provider’s full range of solutions via the site in Curaçao, which will boast direct connectivity to Continent 8’s network of over 100 locations across four continents. 

Additionally, the firm will provide protection for its partners with its multi-layered cybersecurity offering, operating out of an advanced multi-tenant Tier-IV data centre in Curaçao that runs on the ‘highest technical and operational standards’. 

Nick Nally, Chief Revenue Officer at Continent 8 Technologies, added: “We pride ourselves on our agility and ability to provide solutions to customers, quickly. We realised an opportunity and we had to move fast to ensure operators have the very best hosting solutions.

“With the changes being made in Curaçao with regards to online gambling licences, strengthening the application process to attract a wider range of operators, those looking to seek a licence can be assured that they can capitalise on leading services and solutions from Continent 8.”

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During recent Parliamentary questions, Weerwind acknowledged that the cabinet “endorses the finding that there is insufficient effective control and supervision on the online gambling sector in Curaçao”.

However, confidence was offered that a step-by-step reform and modernisation plan, that would revamp a “non-transparent system of master and sublicensees,” will pay dividends. 

“This is a concern for the Netherlands and the reason that there are two measures in the ‘National Package Curaçao’ related to the reform and modernisation of the entire gambling sector, and in particular the online offshore gambling sector,” he noted.

The revamp of the current approach, it is said, will include the formation of an independent supervisor of online casino gambling that could revoke a licence, if necessary; as well as ensuring that providers of online games of chance from Curaçao act in accordance with the laws and regulations of the countries they target.

“There is insufficient data available on the extent to which Dutch companies or interests of Dutch people are involved in the online gambling sector in Curaçao,” Weerwind noted.

Furthermore, it is added that the Curaçao parliament will be responsible for the introduction of the laws and regulations for the modernisation and reform of the offer of online games of chance, with Netherlands on hand to supply technical assistance “if desired and where possible”. 

“The licensing, supervision and enforcement of the supply of both country-specific and online games of chance fall within the autonomy of the country Curaçao and therefore outside the jurisdiction of the Dutch Gaming Authority,” Weerwind reiterated throughout.

To close, the Minister for Legal Protection was quizzed on moves being undertaken across the remaining two countries that comprise the Kingdom of the Netherlands, namely Aruba and St Maarten.

Currently, the former of the aforementioned regions has an authority that supervises the casino sector, while in St Maarten “there is no supervisor of the gambling sector”. 

“There are currently no concerns at the cabinet that the countries cannot comply with this measure from the country package,” Weerwind closed. 

“The progress is monitored and included in the periodic implementation reports on the country packages. 

“For Aruba and Sint Maarten it also applies that the autonomous countries within the Kingdom and that they are responsible for their own laws and regulations, also with regard to the gaming sector.”

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