The European gaming & betting association or EGBA is a Brussels-based trade association that represents the leading online betting and gaming operators established, regulated, and licensed in the EU. It was established in 2017to replace the European betting association of 2003. It was founded by 7 leading operators in Europe Bet-at-home; Interwetten Gaming Limited; Party Gaming; Digibet; Bwin; Carmen Media Group; Expekt Sportwetten.
You can check the list of reputable European online casinos at CasinoGap that are licensed and regulated. EGBA is a nonprofit organization that works together with national and EU regulatory authorities along with other stakeholders towards a well channelled and well regulated online gambling market. EGBA advocates for regulations and ensures that gambling offers are attractive enough to appeal to the major customer base.
EGBA Features
EGBA offers a set of rules that gambling operators must comply with in order to join the association. The requirements for the same include :
- A casino must be audited by a third party in order to maintain transparency
- Commit to responsible gambling and promote self-exclusion schemes
- Casinos must offer 24/7 customer care services which are prompt
- Allow players to set limits according to their budgets
Another prominent feature of EGBA includes its ability to curb gambling operators from laundering money. One must promote social responsibility in order to be a member of the association.
Duties Of EGBA
EGBA aims to create a uniform online gaming industry for all gaming operators across Europe to offer their services across the continent. This objective runs parallel to European Union Philosophy and thus is talking with European countries who are banning online gambling. The association takes legal recourse against countries that illegalize online gambling. The second duty of EGBA is to facilitate responsible, fair, and secure gambling among gaming operators and punters who use such gambling platforms.
EGBA promotes gambling in a responsible way and encourages self-exclusion schemes as well. Therefore, it has come up with a code of conduct that all members need to follow. EGBA mentioned that the members are committed to advertising gambling in a socially responsible way, especially during events like the Euro 2020 championship. EGBA follows a responsible advertising code that puts this commitment into action.
Similar European Gambling Organisations
European Casino Association
The European Casino Association or ECA is an organization that represents individual and national operators of brick and mortar casinos in Europe. The association represents over 900 casinos and around 70,000 employees across Europe. Founded in the early 90s, ECA was founded and has represented non-EUnon EU countries and EU member states.
The main objective of it is to focus on and promote issues related to casinos like casino operations. It also provides a focal point from which casino operators, national policymakers, and stakeholders can address casino matters and solve issues related to them. EGBA also aims at contributing to EU decisions on casino-related issues.
United Kingdom Gambling Commission
UKGC is the largest organization licensing gambling operators in the United Kingdom. For casinos to operate, whether offline or online, acquiring a license from the UKGC is needed. The commission assigns licenses only after conducting an audit report for ensuring that the gambling company adheres to the safety of punters. UKGC looks at the finances of a company and focuses on whether it has a separate players account for player funds.
This is needed because if a company goes bankrupt, it can still pay the punters who had won real money. The commission also looks at the RTP rate. UKGC usually performs a thorough audit which includes criminal records and the ownership structure of gambling businesses for ensuring British punters are protected from companies that are incompetent in nature. If a casino is operating in the UK without a UKGC license, it is absolutely illegal and untrustworthy.
Gambling Regulator European Forum
Gambling Regulator European Forum or GREF is an organization that has over 30 years of experience. The organization is a base on which members gather knowledge and share experiences with regard to gambling.
GREF aims at providing useful references and materials while being the source of comments on issues regarding gambling and online casinos. Members who have access to the platform include supervisors from the gambling sector, those who provide licenses to gambling operators, and legislators of information related to gambling.
Conclusion
EGBA member companies meet the highest regulatory standards. EGBA members use digital tools for preventing minors from accessing online gambling in Europe, including age verification, crypto gaming and electronic identification. In 2020, it had 234 online gambling licenses for providing its services to 29 million customers across 19 countries.
EGBA members account for 36% of Europe’s GGR. EGBA mentioned that the total gambling revenue for 2021 has an increase of 7.5%. Land-based revenue was down by 32% in 2019. EGBA also posits mobile devices would get used for 61.5% of all online bets by 2026 due to technological advancements.
