Svenska Spel Calls for a Tightening on Loans in Sweden

During the recent lockdowns, the Swedish Gaming Regulator installed several safeguards to protect the online and land-based gambling community. However, a review of the local gambling industry showed no notable movement in gambling spend and at-risk player ratios.

According to Svenskaspel, a report by the Public Health Authority showed that only 0.5% of the Swedish population could qualify as potentially problematic and that less than one per cent showed an increase in their risk profile during the pandemic.

To understand why the official statistics show so little movement in problem gambling while the number of new accounts increased and the perception of time spent gambling, Svenska Spel conducted a series of anonymous polls.

 The Number Don’t Lie

The polls aimed to understand the real-world impact of changes, such as limiting deposits to SEK5000 per month and the limitations applied to various casino games. The poll was limited to players who had hit the SEK5000 limit and asked what they did once they could no longer gamble on their original account.

• 70% of respondents said they moved to other gambling sites when capped at licensed operators.
• 30% stated that they hold active accounts at 5 or more gambling accounts.
• 3% admitted to having fifteen or more gambling accounts.

The poll results prove that setting broad limits on licensed gambling sites is not a real solution to helping players manage their budgets. It also does not serve players from income brackets to enjoy the hobby in a manner commensurate with their lifestyles.

Looking Beyond the Veil

While the state-owned gambling company favours some of the amendments made to licensed games of chance, such as needing to prove you can afford to be a high roller, they believe that the focus should not be solely on gaming operators but should also follow the money.

Patrik Hofbauer, Svenska Spel President, said:

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“The loan market needs to be tightened in the same way as happened with the Swedish gambling market. Today it is too easy to take out a loan, and there are too many unscrupulous players on the market. This has consequences not only for people who have difficulty controlling their gambling but for everyone with a ‘luxury trap problem’, i.e., a behaviour where they consume more than they can actually afford.”

Svenska Spel has now added its voice to the Financial Supervisory Authority’s call for enhanced credit checks and a national debt register like Spelpaus. They hope that this added layer of protection will allow them to protect players from overspending regardless of how many separate accounts they register.