Netherlands may revoke bet365’s license over affordability check failures

The Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), says Bet365 fell short in how it assessed the financial capacity of online casino players and has given the company a deadline to fix the problems.

The findings relate to Hillside New Media Malta Plc, which runs the Bet365 brand, and its handling of player protection rules in the Netherlands’ online casino market.

Outdated income verification methods

According to the regulator, Bet365 relied on self-declared income questionnaires to assess customer affordability until March 2025. The KSA stated that this approach does not provide a reliable picture of a player’s real financial situation and fails to meet the Netherlands’ regulatory standards for risk-based player monitoring.

The authority concluded that such methods are insufficient for identifying financially vulnerable players and preventing harmful gambling behavior in online casino environments.

Errors in deposit limit calculations

The regulator also uncovered systemic flaws in deposit limit settings. In multiple cases, customers were allowed to deposit amounts exceeding 30% of their declared monthly income — the legal risk threshold under Dutch law.

In extreme situations, deposit limits reportedly reached over 100% of a player’s monthly income, while some users were found to have no effective limits at all. These findings were classified as direct breaches of player protection requirements.

Regulatory orders and potential sanctions

Under the formal KSA instruction, Bet365 is required to:

• bring its affordability assessment processes into full regulatory compliance

• properly register and act on financial vulnerability risk signals

• introduce effective intervention measures, including automatic blocking of deposits above permitted limits

If the deficiencies are not corrected within four weeks, the operator may face financial penalties or the revocation of its Dutch casino license.

Bet365 has rejected the regulator’s conclusions and announced plans to challenge the KSA decision, maintaining that its customer protection policies already comply with responsible gambling standards.

Legal framework in the Netherlands

Dutch gambling law treats spending above 30% of monthly income as a clear risk indicator, triggering mandatory protective measures such as payment restrictions and account intervention.

Additional safeguards apply to younger adults:

• players aged 18–23 are limited to €300 per month

• players aged 24 and over are limited to €700 per month

Any request to exceed these thresholds requires documented proof of financial capacity and enhanced verification procedures.

Regulatory context and enforcement approach

At the beginning of the year, we also reported on the first KSA fines of 2026 against Starscream Limited and Tulipa Ent Limited, highlighting a broader enforcement push in the Dutch market.

The Bet365 case further demonstrates the strict, compliance-driven nature of the Dutch regulatory model, where affordability controls are treated as core licensing conditions rather than formalities. The Netherlands continues to position player financial protection as a central pillar of its online casino regulation framework, with regulators showing low tolerance for procedural gaps and systemic weaknesses.