BETCLIC EXITS BELGIAN ONLINE GAMBLING MARKET

Monday April 7,2014 :  BETCLIC EXITS BELGIAN ONLINE GAMBLING MARKET
 
Company running scared after prosecutor launches charges that could result in penalties for management.
 
The hard-nosed Belgian online gambling authorities have lowered the boom on Betclic, with prosecutors charging that the company has been targeting Belgian punters in contravention of the European nation's tough and protectionist online gambling laws.
 
InfoPowa readers may recall that the operator took a Euro 60,000 hit recently when Belgian enforcement officials seized company funds held in Belgium and consigned the company to the national black list of companies illegally offering online gambling services to Belgian punters.
 
Whilst Betclic denies any wrongdoing, the official actions appear to have hit home with the news this week that management has decided to exit the Belgian market.
 
Members of Betclic management may have been given pause for thought by the draconian penalties they could face if convicted in a Belgian court – individual prison sentences of between six months and 5 years can be handed down.