The Swedish government is working on a new legislation to ban all forms of gambling on credit. This move is aimed at closing loopholes in the current gambling credit ban. Lawmakers plan to prevent players from gambling with borrowed funds. This is an effort to stop the rise of gambling-related debts across the country.
Highlights of the Story
- Despite the current sanctions on betting with credit, Swedish punters can gamble using credit cards or loans, provided these are not arranged by operators or their agents.
- The proposed legislation will place an umbrella ban on all forms of credit gambling. Operators will be liable for accepting wagers using credit payment methods.
- Operators will also have to actively discourage players from using borrowed funds for gambling. This is part of a broader effort to educate consumers about the side effects of gambling addiction.
The Need for New Legislation
The Swedish Gambling Act currently prevents all forms of gambling with credit. However, consumers can still use borrowed funds to wager at licensed online casinos and sportsbooks, due to loopholes in the legislation. Lawmakers are now proposing a blanket ban on all forms of gambling with credit. This will not only improve player safety but also help sustain the licensed betting industry in the long run.
Swedish lawmakers felt the need for new legislation due to the rise of gambling-related debts across the country. This highlighted the need for better player protection measures. Authorities feel that the existing legislation offers a limited scope by only preventing credit from licensees and not third-party financial services. This severely limits the scope for player protection.
The government feels that this limited coverage is responsible for the rising trend of gambling with borrowed funds. The official statement reads, “By preventing players from gambling with credit, the government wants to protect players from ending up in financial distress.”
What the New Regulations Propose
According to the proposed regulation, operators and their agents will be barred from partnering with credit providers for all purposes related to gambling. This includes financial players or encouraging them to gamble with borrowed funds. Licensed operators and their agents are also barred from accepting wagers if they are aware that the players are betting with borrowed funds.
Reminiscent of an example from another country, Ireland, and taking the Bank of Ireland’s recent introduction of voluntary exclusion on gambling transactions with debit cards a step further, licensees must also decline gambling transactions made from credit cards at all retail and online platforms. The proposal also states that gambling operators must take corrective steps to prevent consumers from gambling with borrowed funds. The government states such measures “must be accessible and affordable and not require new technical equipment,” adding that “they should instead use existing technical equipment to block credit cards for gambling, without affecting the sale of other goods.”
While the updated legislation focuses on an umbrella ban, certain sectors might be exempted. For example, some lotteries might still be allowed to facilitate gambling with credit. The government believes this will help protect good causes unrelated to politics or profits.
The Swedish Gambling Authority (Spelinspektionen) will be in charge of overseeing these exemptions. The government states, “Exemptions should be allowed only for special reasons. For example, subscription lotteries and additional games, provided the operators take preventive measures to limit the amount of credit.” If the legislation clears all legal loopholes, the law will take effect on April 1, 2026.
The ban on credit gambling is part of a broader government initiative to tighten Sweden’s gambling regulations, which included banning three unlicensed operators, imposing monetary fees in cases of incompliance, and fining for gambling marketing violations. The move comes on the heels of the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling’s (BOS) letter to the Ministry of Finance in February to amend the Gambling Act to fit the evolving needs of the modern industry and address concerns regarding consumer protection.