Industry roundup: week ending 30 October 2026

A heavy week for licensing and compliance teams. Brazil's gambling ban moved from the ballot box to the courts and Congress, the UK confirmed a further rise in gaming duty, and the Dutch regulator set out the timetable for its horse racing betting monopoly. There was also movement on Chile's long-delayed online bill, a critical review of Swedish anti-money laundering supervision, and licensing reform in Namibia. All source reporting is from iGaming Business.

Brazil: the ban fight moves to the courts and Congress

With the Superior Electoral Court confirming Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's re-election, the fate of Provisional Measure 1,394 — the instrument that banned gambling — now rests with the Supreme Federal Court and the legislature. Minister Luiz Fux, rapporteur on the constitutional challenges brought by sector bodies and football clubs, had said he would rule once the electoral process concluded, and a public hearing was scheduled for early November. In Congress, the joint committee on the measure had still not been installed, with a vote required by 25 November and the legislative agenda due to be blocked from 9 November until the measure is dealt with. iGB reports operators lost in the region of BRL1.2 billion in revenue during a stoppage of more than 30 days, and that licences were treated as invalid from 25 October. What this means for operators: Brazilian market entry and re-entry plans should be built around at least two scenarios — a partial restoration covering sports betting only, and a requirement to reapply for licences from scratch. Read the full story.

UK: machine games duty rises to 25%

The Autumn Budget confirmed a five-percentage-point increase in machine games duty, taking it to 25%. It follows the near-doubling of remote gaming duty to 40% in the previous budget, and a new 25% rate for remote betting duty — up from 15% — due to take effect next year. The rise was smaller than some in the sector had feared, and equity markets reacted with relief, but advisers were unimpressed. Dan Waugh of Regulus warned of venue closures and job losses and said repeated fiscal changes make the UK look unreliable to investors, while Bethan Lloyd of Wiggin noted that "the industry is already very squeezed" and expected further consolidation. Ismail Vali of Gaming Compliance International placed the increase within a wider set of pressures driving players towards unlicensed sites. What this means for operators: UK-facing businesses should revisit margin assumptions and product mix now, and be ready to evidence how they are competing with the black market, because that argument will shape the next round of policy. Read the full story.

Netherlands: timetable set for the horse racing betting tender

The Dutch Gaming Authority has published the process for awarding the single totalizator licence, which carries the exclusive right to offer land-based pool betting on horse racing in the Netherlands. Applications open on 4 January 2027 and close on 31 January 2027, with the five-year licence running from 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2032, replacing one that expires at the end of June. The non-refundable processing fee is EUR40,900, up 27.8% on the EUR32,000 charged at the 2022 tender, and the licensee must direct 10% of monthly gross gaming revenue from Dutch horse and trotting races to the equestrian sector. Applications are assessed against statutory and public interest criteria; if more than one applicant qualifies, the winner is chosen by an unweighted lottery draw under notarial supervision. Online horse racing betting is unaffected and remains under the 2021 Gambling Act. What this means for operators: Anyone considering a bid has a short window and a non-refundable fee at risk, so the statutory criteria should be worked through well before the application form appears in December. Read the full story.

Chile: online bill advances, with the key disputes unresolved

The government sent amendments to the Senate's Economic Committee in late October, moving on a bill first introduced in 2022. The framework on the table offers five-year licences to private operators, applies 19% VAT to the margin between stakes and winnings alongside a separate 3% levy, and bans advertising and promotional bonuses while imposing default deposit and time limits. A transitional route would let operators already serving the market apply for interim licences while they complete certification and supervisory review — the provision drawing the most criticism, with the casino association arguing it lets previously unlicensed operators avoid consequences and complaining of asymmetries in how online and land-based businesses are taxed. Separate proposals to ban online gambling outright, or to reserve the market for Chile's two lottery operators, remain in play. What this means for operators: Chile is worth preparing for but not yet worth committing to; the transitional licence terms and the advertising ban are the clauses to track, since both will determine whether a market entry is viable. Read the full story.

Sweden: trade body challenges the regulator's AML method

BOS, the Swedish trade association for online gambling, published a Nordic Legal report comparing Spelinspektionen's anti-money laundering supervision with that of other Swedish authorities, including the financial regulator and the Stockholm County Administrative Board. The report's argument is that those bodies work at system level, examining an operator's risk assessment, procedures and controls before sampling customer files to test whether they work, whereas the gambling regulator has leaned on small samples — 11 of 12 AML decisions since 2021 rested mainly on between five and 15 customer files, frequently leaving the operator's overall risk assessment outside the scope of review. The report also notes that seven of nine AML decisions between 2022 and 2025 set sanctions at or above half the statutory maximum, well above the comparators. Secretary general Gustaf Hoffstedt said the licensed market would benefit from a more collaborative approach; the regulator declined to comment. What this means for operators: Until supervisory practice changes, Swedish licensees should assume individual customer files will be read closely, and make sure file-level decisions are documented well enough to stand on their own. Read the full story.

Namibia: licensing reform alongside a stretched regulator

Namibia is consolidating submissions on amendments to its lotteries and gambling regulations, following regional validation workshops in October and earlier consultations in the spring. The changes would revise licensing and registration arrangements, including a new electronic software lottery licence covering digital and online platforms, and introduce operator fees to fund a central electronic monitoring system. The Gambling Board of Namibia has tendered for that real-time monitoring system and an automated licensing platform, with the deadline extended to 5 November. At the same time, the responsible minister told parliament that the board is not yet fully operational and still needs to recruit, with staff shortages affecting oversight of online platforms and the collection of fees and levies. What this means for operators: Emerging markets that combine a new online licence category with an under-resourced regulator tend to produce slow approvals and uneven enforcement, so build generous timelines into any Namibian application. Read the full story.

The week in short

• Brazil — the ban's legality goes before the Supreme Federal Court while Congress faces a 25 November deadline.
• United Kingdom — machine games duty up five points to 25%, with remote betting duty moving to 25% next year.
• Netherlands — totalizator licence applications open 4 January 2027 and close 31 January 2027.
• Chile — Senate committee receives amendments; transitional licensing remains contested.
• Sweden — trade body report criticises sample-based AML supervision and high sanction levels.
• Namibia — new online licence category proposed as the regulator continues to recruit.

If any of this affects your licensing roadmap — a new market application, a renewal, or an AML review before the regulator asks — we are happy to talk it through. Get in touch and tell us where you are heading next.