Dutch Regulator Cracks Down on Loss-Based Gambling Bonuses
Xenia Luch
08 February 2024
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The Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has made it clear what kind of bonuses are not allowed under the law.
From now on, any promotions that reward customers for losing money are banned.
Background: in 2023, the KSA started looking into cashback bonuses that some operators in the Netherlands were offering. The regulator warned them that these bonuses were encouraging reckless gambling, which is illegal in the country. But the law was not very clear about whether cashback was one of the forbidden bonuses, as the KSA decided this on a case-by-case basis -there was no official guidance in laws or other rules on this matter.
Because of the confusion, operators could still advertise their offers and only get warnings from the KSA.
After the investigation, the regulator came up with a new interpretation: no bonuses based on losses. This means no cashback, and no other tricks to give back money from lost bets.
The clarification took effect as soon as it was announced. So anyone who breaks it now won’t get away with just a warning.