Africa

SportPesa Halts its Operations in Kenya due to Tax Hike

Published

6 years ago

October 1, 2019

Niji Narayan

SportPesa Halts its Operations in Kenya due to Tax Hike

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Online betting firm SportPesa has halted its operations in Kenya due to a drastic hike in taxes on betting stakes. The parliament voted an amended proposal raising the excise duty on the amount wagered to 20% from an initial 10%.

SportPesa said it was “disappointed” by the move and that it would stop its operations until a “non-hostile regulatory environment” returned.

Online sports betting companies have grown rapidly in the East African nation in recent years. The gaming industry achieved a combined revenue of 204 billion shillings (£1.63 billion) last year. That sparked government concern about the social impact of betting.

In May, Kenya introduced new gambling regulations, including a ban on advertising outdoors and on social media.

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Niji Narayan

Niji Narayan has been in the writing industry for well over a decade or so. He prides himself as one of the few survivors left in the world who have actually mastered the impossible art of copy editing. Niji graduated in Physics and obtained his Master’s degree in Communication and Journalism. He has always interested in sports writing and travel writing. He has written for numerous websites and his in-depth analytical articles top sports magazines like Cricket Today and Sports Today. He reports gaming industry headlines from all around the globe.