As Sweden’s new gambling laws become a reality on the first day of 2019, 26 more gaming licenses were issued by the Swedish regulatory agency, Lotteriinspektionen this week. Some of the biggest names in the industry made the regulator’s Santa list, including 888 Holdings, Betfair, PAF and the local Cherry AB.
There will be no more approvals this year as the agency goes on its holiday hiatus, but it should be noted that 57 operators have been approved thus far and only a few more are still awaiting approval.
“Several applications still need to be tried and decided and licensing is continuing after the turn of the year,” said Lotteriinspektionen.
One of the most notable companies that received approval this time around was Cherry AB which grabbed eight of the 26 licenses.
“Although, the license applications have involved a considerable amount of work, we are convinced that the Swedish regulations provide better conditions for gaming operators, our customers as well as for us as a company and therefore also for our shareholders,” said Gunnar Lind, the President and CEO of Cherry. “Sweden is an important market and we intend to continue growing from our already strong position.”
According to the director-general of the regulatory agency, Camilla Rosenberg, it is “gratifying” to know that Swedish players have such a wide option to choose from in the coming year.