The Dutch gaming regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has imposed significant conditional fines on three companies for promoting unlicensed gambling offers.
SBM Holding Group, Sun Block Media Labs 2.0, and JEF Holdings face weekly penalties of €75,000 each for continued illegal advertising through the affiliate website CasinoScout.nl.
The enforcement action follows a series of infractions by the website’s operators. According to the KSA, CasinoScout.nl had previously complied with regulations by advertising only legal providers.
However, following a change in its ownership structure, the site resumed the promotion of illegal gambling websites.
The regulator issued formal warnings which received no response, leading the KSA to take steps to have the domain taken offline.
Although the site was temporarily unavailable, it later returned with an IP block designed to prevent access from the Netherlands. Despite this measure, KSA investigators found that the site continued to promote illegal gambling platforms and ads.
Further investigation revealed that the three companies also owned and operated another website, besteonlinecasinonederland.com, which similarly promoted illegal offers.
The KSA has confirmed that the weekly penalty payments will apply to all related platforms controlled by the named parties.
This strict enforcement action aligns with the KSA’s broader success in channelling players to the regulated market, having recently reported that 93% of Dutch players now use legal platforms following the implementation of stricter consumer protection rules.
