Latest News
Record sign-ups in 2021 push GAMSTOP registrants beyond 200,000

- GAMSTOP recorded its highest ever day for registrations in February 2021
- An average of 5,500 people per month have registered since launch in April 2018
- 96% keep self-exclusion in place once the initial exclusion period has expired
More than 200,000 people are now registered with GAMSTOP, the free, independent national self-exclusion scheme for online gambling, after a spike in numbers during lockdown.
Registrations in February 2021 increased 21% year-on-year, with nearly 6,500 people choosing to exclude themselves from all UK-licensed sites, which followed a 14% year-on-year increase in January when more than 7,000 people registered. There were 326 registrations on February 22nd, the highest daily figure recorded in GAMSTOP’s history.
The 200,000 landmark, which was not expected to be reached until later in the year, coincides with the first anniversary of a shake-up in the self-exclusion system. From March 31st last year it became a licensing requirement for all online operators to be registered with GAMSTOP.
According to the Gambling Commission, the total number of online bets rose by 12% from November to December 2020, and the trend towards more online gambling may be leading to more vulnerable individuals choosing to exclude themselves from all sites.
In January 2021, 49,328 GAMSTOP-excluded individuals out of a possible 177,038 attempted to gamble and were successfully blocked by the scheme. While this demonstrates the effectiveness of GAMSTOP, it also highlights that self-exclusion is not a silver bullet for those with a gambling addiction, who should always seek treatment alongside blocks they have in place.
GAMSTOP advocates a layered approach to tackling problem gambling and is collaborating with GamCare and Gamban on the TalkBanStop campaign, which promotes the use of a range of practical tools and support via The National Gambling Helpline.
Registration with GAMSTOP is free, with people asked to fill in personal details and select an exclusion period of six months, one year or five years. More than 120,000 of those who have registered chose to put in place a five-year exclusion, the longest term possible.
GAMSTOP was launched in April 2018 and, of those who chose shorter self-exclusion periods, and therefore became eligible to remove themselves from the scheme from October 2018 onwards, 96% left the exclusion in place. Since that date, 15,400 have removed their exclusion only to reinstate it.
Recently, the number of women registered with GAMSTOP surpassed 50,000, and the gender split on the scheme is 71% male, 29% female. 18-34 year-olds are the most prolific age group using GAMSTOP, accounting for 59% of all registrants.
Fiona Palmer, CEO of GAMSTOP, said: “We’re pleased that GAMSTOP is serving as an effective safety net, providing crucial breathing space to those who are struggling with their gambling. With the rate of registrants continuing to rise, I would urge anybody putting self-exclusion from online gambling in place through GAMSTOP to also seek treatment. Awareness around self-exclusion schemes and blocking software has been increasing throughout the last year, and it is important that we continue to spread the message about what help is available to those who need it most.”
Matt Blanks, 35, is a recovering gambling addict who registered with GAMSTOP after his addiction led to him trying to take his own life. He now uses his experience to help other suffering with the addiction.
He said: “Signing up to GAMSTOP was a massive relief to me. I had previously had to self-exclude with each individual operator, and would simply move onto the next site who I hadn’t self-excluded from. It was like a game of whack-a-mole, and I kept relapsing. GAMSTOP helped me self-exclude from all online gambling sites in one go, giving me space to clear my head, seek support and kickstart my recovery journey.”
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Latest News
Relax Gaming appoints Antonia Svensson as Chief Commercial Officer

Relax Gaming, the iGaming aggregator and supplier of award-winning content, has announced the appointment of Antonia Svensson as its new Chief Commercial Officer, marking a key step in the company’s next phase of commercial growth.
Svensson brings over 13 years of experience in the gaming industry, having held senior leadership roles across payments, content supply, and operations.
Her career began at Trustly, overseeing payment solutions for the gaming vertical, before joining Yggdrasil Gaming as Chief Commercial Officer. Most recently, she served as General Manager Malta at Light & Wonder, where she was responsible for the company’s online casino business across Europe.
In addition to her executive background, Svensson has sat on several gaming industry boards, including Fantasma Games, contributing strategic insights to support business development and innovation.
Now based at Relax Gaming’s Malta headquarters, Svensson will oversee all commercial activity across the group, supporting its global roadmap and driving new revenue opportunities through strategic partnerships.
Martin Stålros, CEO at Relax Gaming, said: “It’s a pleasure to welcome Antonia to Relax as our new CCO. Her standout experience and industry knowledge can serve as a fantastic asset to the company on a commercial level and I’m delighted that she has joined Relax at such an exciting stage in our development.”
Antonia Svensson, Chief Commercial Officer at Relax Gaming, said: “Relax Gaming has carved out an impressive reputation as one of the most forward-thinking and dynamic companies in iGaming. Having watched its growth closely over the years, I’m incredibly proud to now be part of this journey.
“I’m eager to collaborate with the talented team here to drive strategic growth, strengthen our partner relationships, and unlock new commercial opportunities across global markets.”
The post Relax Gaming appoints Antonia Svensson as Chief Commercial Officer appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Latest News
Neosurf and BridgerPay announce new strategic partnership

Pioneering cash-to-digital payments company teams up with market-leading payment orchestration platform to help partners unlock their full potential
Neosurf, the progressive online payments company known for its expertise in cash-to-digital solutions, smooth user experiences and providing ongoing responsible gaming and AML support to its partners has announced it has formed a new strategic partnership with the highly scalable and data-centric payment orchestration platform, BridgerPay.
Famed in the online payments industry for its prebuilt connections, unified dashboard and single-source reporting, BridgerPay is a fully agnostic platform that can be integrated into any set-up to help clients automate their payment flows and gain real-time insights into their customers.
Among the company’s wide range of solutions, BridgerPay is particularly well-known for its Bridger RetryTM capability, which empowers clients to save up to 30% of soft declined card payments by automatically referring them to fallback providers without disrupting the customer experience.
“Like Neosurf, BridgerPay is a company that’s fully committed to improving the online payments experience not just for operators, but for their customers as well,” said Andrea McGeachin, Neosurf’s Group CEO. “By teaming up with them, we’ll be able to ensure that Neosurf is seamlessly integrated into their clients’ checkouts as a payment option, giving bettors even more freedom over how they deposit.
“Not only will this improve the online cashier experience for customers by giving them instant access to our quick and secure cash-to-digital solutions, but it will also allow all BridgerPay partners to serve the huge number of players who prefer to use cash for their online transactions.”
With BridgerPay already helping organisations worldwide connect with hundreds of payment providers through simple, ready-made integrations, adding Neosurf further expands merchant choice and customer access.
“We’re delighted to partner with Neosurf. Their cash-to-digital payment solutions will play an important role in helping our clients reach and engage new customers across a wide range of markets,” said Matthew Boundy, PSP Partnership Manager. “Offering a service that reduces operators’ transaction costs, supports responsible gaming and AML best practice and provides a frictionless user experience to customers, they’re a key partner for us and will add enormous value to our clients.”
Though initially covering just European markets, the partnership between Neosurf and BridgerPay has plenty of scope to grow in future and will also see the two companies share knowledge and collaborate on technical solutions as they continue to innovate within the online payment space.
The post Neosurf and BridgerPay announce new strategic partnership appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
EveryMatrix Press Releases
EveryMatrix signs largest ever content aggregation deal with bet365

EveryMatrix has agreed its largest ever global casino aggregation deal supplying bet365 with both its own exclusive content and titles from more than 40 premium games providers.
SlotMatrix, part of the EveryMatrix Group, is the largest aggregation platform in the world with more than 37,000 games from 350+ global suppliers including the Group’s own, Armadillo and Fantasma Studios.
It will offer bet365 more than 40 vendors across multiple regulated markets including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Mexico with further territories slated for future release.
The business unit was further bolstered in 2024 by the acquisition of Fantasma Games and, earlier this year, by a new management team focused on accelerating aggregation and content services expansion across both existing and new regulated markets.
This includes Mark Hothersall, Head of Business Development and Carl Gatt Baldacchino, Head of Account Management, both previously from Evolution Gaming.
They are responsible for driving forward the commercial success of SlotMatrix by accelerating the unit’s in-house games development, continually strengthening its third-party content offering and ensuring SlotMatrix provides exceptional customer service.
Ebbe Groes, Group CEO & Co-Founder EveryMatrix, said: “Today is very significant for the Group highlighting both just how much of a ‘must-have’ product SlotMatrix is for tier-1 brands across multiple markets and how far ahead it is compared to its rivals.
“We’re thrilled such a world-renowned brand such as bet365 has put their faith in us to drive their content strategy. SlotMatrix has truly come of age and, with an increased focus on ramping up our own games development and attracting even more premium vendors to the platform there really is no ceiling as to how far it can go.”
A bet365 spokesperson, added: “We are thrilled to partner with EveryMatrix. This collaboration represents a significant step forward in our commitment to providing exceptional products to our customers.”
The post EveryMatrix signs largest ever content aggregation deal with bet365 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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