SportPesa Gets Clearance from KRA to Resume Operations

Kenyan sports betting firm SportPesa is planning to resume its full operations after a lengthy two-month absence prompted by the cancellation of its operational license.

“There has been notable progress in these sessions and we are pleased that KRA has now cleared us to have our license renewed. SportPesa is confident that these processes will be completed soon allowing the company to resume full operations,” the company stated.

SportPesa was among 27 betting firms that had their licenses revoked by the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) pending clearance of withholding tax on winnings.

SportPesa headed to court challenging KRA’s definition on winnings and most recently even sought compensation for money lost since the government sanctioned shutdown.

The firm would see both its bids thrown out as the courts sided by the State’s stance on the betting industry’s taxation.

SportPesa will now be required to stick to KRA’s definition of winnings which will see it trim the return on customer winnings at the rate of 20% upon its return to full operations.