The Administrative Court of Appeal in Sweden has upheld fines totaling SEK 44 million against Bet365’s subsidiaries, Hillside (Gaming) and Hillside (Sports), for failing to adhere to banking obligations aimed at player protection and violating deposit limit regulations. Specifically, Hillside (Gaming) was fined SEK 4 million, while Hillside (Sports) faced a larger penalty of SEK 40 million. These fines stem from earlier findings by the Swedish gambling authority, Spelinspektionen.
Swedish gambling laws require operators to actively monitor players and intervene when there's a risk of harm from gambling. An investigation found that Hillside overly depended on automated messages such as pop-ups, email reminders, and spending alerts, but was slow to take manual action and enforce stricter measures despite indications of gambling-related issues.
From January 2019 to April 2022, Hillside permitted its customers to create a "no limit" deposit option. The investigation focused on ten clients who incurred the highest losses over two months in 2021, with a deeper analysis conducted on five of those individuals.
Hillside contended that its risk identification systems were effective, arguing that the sample analyzed was small and only represented a minor portion of its customer base. They also pointed out that the regulatory guidance regarding the timing of interventions was not clearly defined.
The fines imposed were actually lower than the initial amounts proposed by regulators: the fine for the gaming subsidiary was adjusted down to SEK 4 million from a suggested SEK 65 million, while the sports betting subsidiary received a reduced penalty of SEK 40 million.
