Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of EGBA, recently spoke with Antena 3, one of Romania’s leading news channels about safer gambling in Romania.

In the interview, Maarten outlined our recommendation that Romania establishes a national self-exclusion register for gambling—a crucial player protection measure already implemented in 17 EU member states. The interview was conducted at a recent event held at the Romanian Parliament organised by the Romanian online gambling association (AOJND).

EGBA’s recommendations for Romania

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At that meeting, EGBA underlined its recommendation that Romania introduces a comprehensive gambling self-exclusion framework, and recommended that the system should:

• Apply to all licensees (land-based and online gambling operators).
• Be accessible through a user-friendly, GDPR-compliant, government website.
• Be clearly communicated and made accessible via gambling platforms.
• Apply in real-time and be fail proof.
• Have clear minimum and maximum time periods for the self-exclusion duration.
• Ensure registered players receive information on where to seek support.
• Require operators to remove self-excluded players from marketing databases.

Establishing a self-exclusion framework based on these European best practices would provide a crucial safety net for Romanian players.

Source: EGBA

Vixio, a leading provider of regulatory intelligence solutions, ‍is proud to announce its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Outlook, which found that regulators are cracking down on money laundering weaknesses with severe consequences, totaling over €36m in fines from March 2024 to March 2025 in Europe alone.

Vixio’s AML Outlook examines the challenges of complying with AML requirements in jurisdictions around the world, outlines regulators’ efforts to thwart criminal activity, and considers how payments and gambling firms can prevent being caught up in money laundering scandals.

The report found that in the last year, in the European area alone, there have been around 30 enforcement actions from regulators fining payments and e-money firms for falling short in their adherence to AML/CTF rules.

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Financial institutions found to have money laundering weaknesses face profound consequences, with prosecutors and regulators alike generally unwilling to be empathetic on this matter. For example:

• In March 2025, Germany’s regulator, BaFin, fined Ratepay €25,000 over suspected money laundering.
• In February 2025, Estonia’s Money Laundering Data Bureau revoked B2BX Digital Exchange OÜ’s licence for failing to implement proper customer due diligence, transaction monitoring and risk assessments.
• The Bank of Lithuania, meanwhile, revoked Foxpay’s licence in November 2024 for systemic AML/CTF and governance failures, including fund mismanagement and conflicts of interest.

John Gidla, Head of Payments Compliance, Vixio, explains, “Although AML compliance involves significant costs for payments firms –  including investment in transaction monitoring systems, customer due diligence (CDD) processes and ongoing staff training – the consequences of failure can be significant. In addition to financial penalties, failing to prevent money laundering can severely damage a firm’s reputation, leading to loss of customers, partners and investor confidence. Maintaining a strong compliance framework is crucial for preserving trust and long-term business viability.”

Until now, the EU’s AML enforcement has been more fragmented, but the EU’s new Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) could be a significant step towards addressing AML enforcement and closing gaps that criminals have been exploiting for years.

Regulatory scrutiny means that firms need to implement know your customer (KYC) procedures, monitor transactions on their systems for suspicious activity and report concerns through suspicious activity reports (SARs) to the relevant authorities.

The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) is pleased to announce a partnership with Letzz, an AI-powered compliance workspace designed for online gambling, to modernise regulatory monitoring and enhance strategic compliance across Europe’s fragmented online gambling landscape.

Through this partnership, EGBA will implement Letzz‘s AI-powered tool to enhance its own regulatory monitoring capabilities. Launching this week, the Letzz platform offers operators real-time, expert-validated insights and automated regulatory news scanning, creating a single, reliable source of information for compliance management.

“We are committed to promoting the highest standards of compliance across Europe’s online gambling sector,” said Maarten Haijer, Secretary General at EGBA. “With 27 countries in the EU, each with their own gambling laws and a myriad of requirements, accessible tools like Letzz can help both associations like EGBA and operators better understand the complex landscape of regulatory obligations.”

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“We founded Letzz with the belief that compliance should be a competitive advantage, not just a necessity,” said Daniel Gambin, Co-Founder and CEO at Letzz. “Our partnership with EGBA allows us to bring this vision to a wider audience of operators who share our commitment to excellence in regulatory compliance. By transforming compliance from a challenge into a strategic business asset, we’re helping operators stay abreast of the latest regulatory changes.”

The collaboration reflects EGBA’s commitment to promoting a well-regulated online gambling market with the highest compliance standards.

Source: egba.eu