Ireland releases first list of licensed online gambling firms

After years of false starts and political cogitation, the Irish online gambling regulatory and licensing regime for online gambling operators accessing the Irish market finally came to fruition August 1 and has been followed by the release of a list of 27 operators who have been successful in achieving licensed status.

The list includes the following well-known operators:

Paddy Power
Boyle Sports
Pokerstars
Nektan
bet365
William Hill
Betfair
Betfred
Ladbrokes
Gala Coral
Matchbook
188BET
SkyBet,
Full Tilt
Bet-at-home.

Ireland’s Betting (Amendment) Act 2015 was signed into law earlier this year after years of debate and negotiation, updating and extending the country’s regulatory regime in relation to bookmakers licences, as provided for in the Betting Act 1931, to include remote betting operators who accept bets from Irish customers.

All remote bookmakers and remote betting intermediaries providing betting services to customers in Ireland are required to hold a licence from August 1st.

The government has estimated that the new regime could help raise an additional Euro 25 million annually for the country in fees and taxes.

Illegal operators now face punitive fines that can go as high as Euro 300,000.