Swedish authority bans two gambling companies for operating in the country without license

The Swedish gambling regulator, Spelinspektionen, has banned two gaming brands for operating in the country without a license. The regulator is mandating Moonrail Limited and Perfect Storm, registered in Curaçao, to cease targeting Swedish customers over violations of chapter 3, section 3 of the country's Gambling Act.

Perfect Storm was investigated for operating csgo500.com and Moonrail for running csgoempire.com. The agency presented evidence that the two sites made gambling available to Swedish customers without holding licenses in the country.

The sites contained information aimed at Swedish customers, including in the conditions section. Marketing materials from their affiliates are also in Swedish. Ultimately, the regulator assessed that Moonrail Limited and Perfect Storm provide games in Sweden to Swedish customers despite not having the proper licenses.

The Spelinspektionen said: “If Swedish consumers are not allowed to register and create an account on a website that offers games, Spelinspektionen considers that the game cannot be considered to be provided in Sweden. The Gambling Act is therefore not applicable in that situation.” 

Last week, the body fined Malta-based Videoslots $812.464 for violations of anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorist financing laws. The regulator also issued a warning and cited "serious and systematic" failures to identify customers, after a random selection of 10 customers with the highest spending between 2019 and 2012 showed discrepancies in information and transaction data.