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Greece Bans 400 Online Gambling Sites

Greece Bans 400 Online Gambling Sites

Added: August 1, 2013

The online gambling situation continues to spin around in Europe, this time it was Greece that took a step and created their online casino blacklist. The Greek Independent Administrative Authority's Hellenic Gaming Commission announced today that 401 different online gambling websites were blacklisted and accused of operating virtual gambling venues without authorization in the country's jurisdiction.

Nobody has got their hands on the list yet, but since it is so lengthy we are anticipating that most reputable sites, and those not so reputable, will be included. We will share more details concerning this as soon as they are revealed.

The statement by the Hellenic Gaming Commission reads: "This list was transmitted to 211 Internet service providers (ISPs) and credit institutions, through the Bank of Greece, in order to move forward on their own actions, as provided for in the relevant provisions. Also, the list was transmitted to the competent prosecuting Authorities and criminal (Misdemeanors Athens Prosecutor, Financial and E-crime Prosecution Department of financial police) in connection with their own powers, since the supply of gambling without a license is a serious criminal offence referred to in article 52 of law No. 4002/2011 (s 180)."

Greek authorities are taking a serious step in banning online casino sites, they also stated that it is very likely that the list will soon have more members added. "The list (black list), contains 401 sites, which were found by the HGC to offer, without permission, to the public in Greece, gambling and betting services, through checks carried out two different days at different times. Each site is checked from two different places. The list (black list), is the first version. The list is dynamic, which means that it will be enriched by ongoing investigations."

Greece is joining the European countries who are failing to comply with European Union regulation which restricts the states from individually banning companies within the region. Belgium is another member of this list, but these countries do not seem to mind not complying with EU laws. It is a real shame for Greek online gamblers, known to be avid and fun, since they will lose access to many of the top online casinos. Unlike Belgium, the Greek authorities have not provided clear details on which companies are eligible to provide online casino services, or regarding whether they will allow companies to apply for online gambling licenses. We will keep you update on the developments.