Compliance Updates
VNLOK Report: Over 95% of Gambling Ads on Meta Platforms are from Illegal Providers
Illegal gambling providers continue to reach Dutch consumers on a large scale via Meta platforms. An analysis by VNLOK’s Ads Library for October, November and December 2025 shows that in each month, more than 95% of the gambling promotions found—both Facebook pages and advertisements—come from illegal providers. At the same time, only a small portion is removed by Meta, which calls for faster and more robust measures.
Illegal gambling advertisements are widely visible
Recent analyses show that illegal gambling advertising via meta-platforms remains widely visible to Dutch consumers. Of the Facebook pages and gambling ads promoting gambling, over 95% originated from illegal gambling providers in all three months.
Fast rotation with a wide reach
It’s striking that ads from illegal providers are rolled out and replaced at breakneck speed: on average, they were visible for one and a half days in October (79% for less than a day), two days in November (69% for less than a day), and two days in December, with 87% of illegal ads being visible for less than a day. Illegal gambling ads also have a wide reach, peaking at 50 million impressions in November.
Enforcement is lagging behind
The regulated Dutch gambling market is designed to protect consumers through strict duty of care, affordability guarantees and advertising regulations. Illegal providers fall outside this system, yet still manage to reach Dutch target groups on a large scale through social advertising. The share of illegal ads removed by Meta remains limited: 3% in October, 5.2% in November and 4.7% in December.
“These figures are alarming. The enormous flood of illegal gambling advertisements on Meta platforms undermines player protection and also erodes trust in the legal market. This problem is unfortunately growing. The promotion of illegal gambling websites on social media is expanding from social advertising to social content. Meta and other platforms are being flooded with viral videos featuring the brands of illegal gambling websites. This content is attracting targeted minors and young adults to illegal gambling offerings, where the risk of gambling harm is very high,” Björn Fuchs, Chairman of VNLOK.
Call from VNLOK
The findings show that the current approach by platforms and regulators is insufficiently aligned with the scale and speed of illegal gambling advertising on social media. To better protect consumers and safeguard the regulated system, additional and targeted actions are necessary:
Meta must strengthen proactive detection, advertiser verification, and rapid takedown processes for illegal gambling promotions targeting the Netherlands.
The Netherlands Gambling Authority must take even more enforcement action, within existing legal frameworks, against marketing companies and platforms that facilitate advertisements and/or content that direct Dutch consumers to illegal gambling websites.
The visibility and attractiveness of legal online gambling are crucial to prevent even more Dutch players from turning to illegal providers. Policymakers and regulators must ensure that additional rules and restrictions for legal providers do not compromise the visibility and attractiveness of legal online gambling. This will lead to a decrease in the net protection of Dutch consumers. A sufficiently visible and attractive legal offering is crucial to prevent even more Dutch players from turning to illegal providers.
The post VNLOK Report: Over 95% of Gambling Ads on Meta Platforms are from Illegal Providers appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Armenia accelerated one of the most aggressive gambling regulatory reforms in Eurasia after approving new measures to control digital platforms, advertising, payments and financial supervision across the betting sector. The strategy promoted by the government of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan aims to strengthen legal gambling operations, increase fiscal oversight and tighten control over offshore operators in a market that has expanded dramatically over the past decade.
The reform is being driven by the Ministry of Finance of Armenia led in 2026 by Vahe Hovhannisyan, together with the State Revenue Committee headed by Rustam Badasyan. The main political architect behind the changes is MP Hayk Sargsyan from the ruling Civil Contract party.
The core of the reform focuses on payments and financial monitoring. Armenia plans to block transfers to unlicensed gambling operators, strengthen AML/KYC requirements and connect licensed platforms directly to state monitoring systems operating in real time. Armenia is advancing the software operator selection for its centralised gaming monitoring center, following the legal framework established in early 2024 to connect platforms directly to state systems in real time.
The 2026 update focuses on accelerating the public tender for the private operator, rather than the initial creation of the monitoring infrastructure, with the State Revenue Committee (SRC) leading the technological implementation. The fiscal framework is also becoming stricter. Since July 1, 2025, Armenia has applied a 10% turnover tax on gambling operations, while online gaming license costs doubled in April 2025 and are scheduled to continue increasing annually through 2028.
According to official figures cited by lawmakers, Armenia’s gambling turnover reached approximately AMD 6.3 trillion in 2023, equivalent to nearly €14 billion, while online casino deposits climbed to AMD 811 billion during 2024.
The government also tightened gambling advertising restrictions, limiting promotions to luxury hotels, border checkpoints and authorised operator channels. Armenian authorities argue that the new regulatory model is designed to protect legal operators, reinforce financial traceability and modernise state supervision over one of Eurasia’s fastest-growing digital industries.
The post Armenia Launches Sweeping Gambling Payment Reform appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has officially extended the deadline for licensed remote operators to implement Phase 2 of the new deposit limit regulations.
In October 2025 the first phase of improvements to tools that help consumers to manage their gambling were introduced in the Remote Technical Standards (RTS) with the second phase due to be introduced on 30 June 2026.
Following stakeholder feedback, the Commission has extended the implementation period of the second phase to the end of September 2026 to allow for further operator technical development time.
From 30 September 2026 operators must:
• offer gross deposit limits to customers, and in some cases re-introduce gross deposit limits to the options available to customers
• name gross deposit limits as “deposit limits” – only this type of limit can be called a “deposit limit”
• offer gross deposit limits with at least equal prominence as other types of financial limit.
“We have also updated our consultation response document to clarify that to ensure consistency across the industry, from 30 September 2026 only gross deposit limits must be offered over fixed time frames. Rolling and fixed time frames can be used for other limit types,” the UKGC said.
“In preparation for implementation operators are asked to refer to the Remote Gambling and Software Technical Standards: Consultation Response and linked annex for the RTS 12 in full effective from 30 September 2026.
“All operators are advised that an annex initially published alongside the supplementary consultation response on 7 October 2025 contained small errors and was temporarily removed from our website. Any downloaded or offline versions of the Annex saved prior to 22 May 2026 should be disregarded.”
The post UKGC Extends Phase 2 Deposit Limit Regulation Deadline to September 2026 appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Coljuegos has officially authorized MrYoker as Colombia’s newest regulated online sports betting and casino operator.
It is estimated that, over the next 5 years, the new operator will obtain revenues close to $2.83 billion.
Through concession contract C2261 of 2026, Coljuegos authorized the entry into operation of the portal www.mryoker.co, a site where sports betting and online games can be carried out legally and monitored by the entity.
The online gaming sector is experiencing one of its best periods, thanks to the industry revitalization strategy implemented during the current administration. With MrYoker, there are now 15 authorized operators in Colombia.
The new portal belongs to the company Global Vitxo SAS, and will initially be able to offer live casino, virtual slot machines, and sports betting until 2031.
According to the projections presented, it is estimated that, for the next 5 years, this operator will contribute approximately $27.282 billion in monopoly revenues and administrative expenses, resources that will go directly to finance the subsidized health system.
It is worth mentioning that, during 2026, online betting portals have contributed $253.224 billion to Coljuegos in terms of exploitation rights, and it is expected that, by the end of the year, these transfers will exceed $450 billion.
The post Coljuegos Authorizes MrYoker as Colombia’s Newest iGaming Operator appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
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