Betfair joins the rush into Spain

The major online gambling group Betfair announced Thursday that it has been successful in obtaining a Spanish operating licence, clearing the way for legal operations in that country.

The company said that its licence enabled it to offer sportsbook and casino products, including roulette and blackjack games.

A Betfair spokesman said the company would pay a gross gaming revenue tax of 25 percent on its Spanish operations – a tax that the company has been paying since May 2011 when Spain’s new gambling act was introduced.

Spain has raised around Euro 70 million ($87.5 million) in back taxes in recent weeks from companies who fell foul of decades-old decrees governing gambling .

Betfair, which recently won one of the first online gambling licences issued in Germany, last month said it had reached a Euro 10 million settlement with Spanish authorities.

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