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Chinese police say two debt-ridden former postgraduate students with a history of heavy gambling were behind what has been described as the country’s largest gold heist, a meticulously planned robbery that saw almost $4 million worth of gold bars and other solid-gold valuables stolen from a luxury retailer in Nanjing. The theft, carried out on May 16, shocked the nation after a gang allegedly made off with approximately 27 kilograms of gold from the store. Following an intens

Tanzania’s iGaming industry has experienced remarkable growth in recent months, with sports betting revenues reportedly surpassing TZS189.18 billion ($72 million). The surge has been driven largely by a youthful customer base aged between 18 and 34, whose growing passion for sports content and widespread use of mobile devices have transformed the country’s gambling landscape. Today, an estimated 99% of gambling activity in Tanzania takes place online through mobile phones.

The gambling regulator of Anjouan has firmly pushed back against suggestions that its licences are designed to provide operators with unrestricted access to betting markets around the world, insisting that its regulatory approvals have never been intended as universal authorizations. Anjouan, one of the self-governing islands that form part of the Union of the Comoros in the Indian Ocean, has increasingly become a focal point in discussions surrounding unlicensed, offshore an

Nigeria’s gambling sector continues to undergo significant transformation nearly eighteen months after a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court fundamentally altered the regulatory structure governing lotteries and games of chance across the country. The decision, delivered in November 2024, transferred regulatory authority from the federal government to individual state governments, triggering a wave of legislative and administrative activity as states move to establish or str

Austria’s long-standing online casino monopoly may finally be approaching its end following a dramatic shift in policy by the Finance Ministry. After years of speculation and only limited movement toward reform, a leaked draft gambling law published on Wednesday indicates that the government is preparing to open the online gambling market to multiple operators. The proposal represents one of the most significant developments in Austria’s gambling sector in decades and could f

Italy’s communications regulator is moving to provide greater clarity on how licensed gambling operators can interact with customers while remaining compliant with the country’s stringent advertising restrictions. The initiative comes as the regulator launches a consultation focused on responsible gambling communications, seeking to establish clearer distinctions between customer information that may be permitted and marketing activity that remains prohibited under existing l

The European Commission is reportedly examining the possibility of introducing an EU-wide tax on online gambling as part of a broader effort to identify new sources of income for the bloc’s next multiannual financial framework. According to reports , the measure is being discussed alongside potential taxes targeting cryptocurrency activity and large digital businesses, with the combined package projected to generate as much as €13.3 billion annually during the 2028–2034 budge

Hedge funds have generated enormous profits this year by betting against publicly traded gambling companies, as a wave of declining share prices across the online betting sector delivered billions in gains to short sellers. Hedge funds have earned at least $2.3bn in 2025 through short positions targeting major online gambling operators. The profits came as several of the industry’s largest listed companies suffered steep market declines amid increasing regulatory pressure,

Kazakhstan is moving aggressively to expand its gambling industry, with authorities announcing the creation of several new gambling zones across resort destinations and urban centers as part of a broader economic development strategy. Under the country’s current legislation, gambling activities are legally restricted to just two designated areas: the city of Konaev in the Almaty region and the Shchuchinsk-Borovoye resort district located in the Akmola region of north-central

Spain has temporarily halted the operations of prediction market platforms Polymarket and Kalshi within its territory after regulators concluded that both services were offering gambling-related products without the legally required authorisations. The country’s Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs & Agenda 2030 confirmed that the Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling has initiated formal sanction proceedings against the two companies. The measure was also

Mounting financial problems among young people in the Dutch city of Enschede have intensified calls for stricter gambling regulation, with local councillor Meryam Sümer urging the Netherlands government to increase the legal minimum age for online gambling from 18 to 24. Sümer, a representative of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and a welfare worker, has also advocated for tighter controls on buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services and stronger enforcement against gam

Indonesia has intensified its nationwide campaign against illegal gambling by officially blocking access to the crypto-based prediction market platform Polymarket, following controversy surrounding wagers tied to President Prabowo Subianto and his political future. Although gambling remains illegal throughout Indonesia, underground betting operations and offshore online gambling sites have continued to attract users for years. Under Prabowo’s administration, however, author

France has taken another step toward strengthening oversight of its gambling industry after the National Gaming Authority (ANJ) unveiled a new risk algorithm designed to help online operators identify compulsive and excessive gambling behavior. The initiative comes as the French gaming market reached a value of €14.1 billion in 2025, increasing pressure on regulators to improve consumer protection measures across the sector. Rather than serving as a medical diagnostic tool,

A vast parallel gambling economy is continuing to flourish within the digital shadows of Italy, generating an estimated €20 billion while attracting millions of active users despite mounting enforcement actions, domain shutdowns, and regulatory intervention by state authorities. The illegal online gambling sector has evolved into a highly adaptive digital ecosystem powered by smartphones, social media platforms, disposable domains, and rapidly replicating websites engineered

A civil court in the state of Goiás has dismissed a compensation lawsuit filed against Novibet by a plaintiff who identified himself as a problem gambler, establishing a firm judicial distinction between the duties of betting operators and the responsibility of users within Brazil’s evolving regulated gambling framework. The ruling was issued by the 3rd Court of the Special Civil Court in the District of Anápolis, which concluded that the case was “completely unfounded” and r

The illegal gambling market in the United Kingdom has expanded sharply, reaching an estimated £16.6bn (US$22.5bn), according to figures from H2 Gambling Capital that were shared by the Betting and Gaming Council. The latest estimate reflects a dramatic rise compared with £5bn ($6.79 billion) in 2019, signalling what analysts describe as a rapidly accelerating black market in the country. Over this period, illegal gambling activity has more than tripled, with growth doubling s

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has identified scams, cyber-enabled fraud and illegal gambling as some of the most serious money laundering threats confronting Singapore, while simultaneously commending the country’s strong gambling oversight and broader anti-money laundering regime in its latest mutual evaluation report published on May 6. The assessment, jointly released by Financial Action Task Force and the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering, concluded that S

Gaming giant Entain has called on the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) to take immediate action against English football clubs accepting sponsorship agreements from gambling operators that are not licensed in the United Kingdom. The owner of the Ladbrokes and Coral betting brands issued a formal statement on Thursday in response to the IFR’s Second Licensing Consultation, which concluded on Tuesday after gathering feedback on the introduction of a new club licensing fra