Poland increases gambling turnover

New regulatory changes welcomed a 4 percent increase in turnover in Poland’s gambling market.

Lottery monopoly Totalizator Sportowy and a growing casino segment that dominate the Polish market managed to reach a 4 percent increase year-on-year in gambling turnover to US$2.8 billion in 2016.

The news reported by the Polish Ministry of Finance represent the first year-on-year growth ever since the sector got regulated in 2009 when the Gambling Act 2009 banned slot machines outside casinos. As Gambling Compliance revealed, this is the first full year that Poland’s market gets calculated without machine gaming outside casinos.

Last month, Totalizator Sportowy revealed that it was looking for firms interested in assisting the operations and the launch of the new casino monopoly business eKasyno, which is set to launch online casino, bingo and poker services. The permission to launch operations was granted last year after legislators approved the amended Polish Gambling Act. Companies that wanted to become Totalizator Sportowy’s partner had time to submit their bids until September 26, same day that started the process to look into the bidders.

This year also saw the announcement of further regulations in the online market in order to prevent illegal transactions. According to the Association of Employers and Employees of Bookmakers, the Treasury suffers big losses that reach US$1.4 billion every year in potential tax revenue because of the illegal activities.