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Experts discuss German State Gambling Treaty

Updated: Dec 15, 2020



As the global gaming industry is reeling from the impact of the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, we continue to look ahead at the coming German online gambling reform.

During last week’s VIXIO GamblingCompliance webinar on Germany’s new State Gambling Treaty, Jessica Maier, Partner, MELCHERS law firm, Jörg Hofmann, Partner, MELCHERS law firm, and Willem van Oort, Founder, Gaming in Germany discussed the treaty’s expected impact on Germany’s online gambling market.

While the entire discussion is worth listening to, several issues were raised that are particularly noteworthy.

  1. It has not yet been fully decided which bet types will be allowed. The 16 federal German states are not aligned on this issue. A majority of 11 states is necessary to come to a final decision.

  2. The bank guarantee of €5m demanded of future license holders – which will be problematic for startups – may be vulnerable to a legal challenge.

  3. While the State Gambling Treaty does not contain a bad actor clause, prospective licensees should not ignore the possibility that in a future licensing procedure their past market behavior may play a role in the assessment of their reliability and trustworthiness.

  4. It will be a significant challenge to get the central data infrastructure required by the new treaty up and running by the agreement’s target date of July 1, 2021.

State treaty summary & stakeholder reactions

A comprehensive overview of the new State Treaty, as well as relevant stakeholder reactions, are available on our website.

About Gaming in Germany

Gaming in Germany aims to be the #1 resource for corporate decision makers, policy officers, and third-party professionals whose work will be impacted by the full regulation of online gambling in Germany.

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