For the past ten years, Kenyan authorities have been actively seeking to control the rapid growth of online betting within the country. Recent actions may indicate that this challenge has been successfully addressed.
The new Gambling Control Bill scaled the National Assembly in January and is now set to be passed into law.
The bill stipulates that online gambling companies and the national lottery should make a KSh. 200 million deposit to the authorities if they are to receive operating licenses in Kenya.
According to the proponents of the bill, online gambling companies and the national lottery need to have higher deposits because they attract more customers compared to companies that only run physical outlets.
The senate tried to knock one zero off the required deposit, advocating that the figure should be KSh. 20 million instead of KSh. 200 million, but Kenyan MPs were having none of that and stuck to their guns.
Naturally, this has been met with disappointment by many operators currently active in the country. Industry experts have opined that his new requirement may force quite a few companies to quit the Kenyan market and also make the country less attractive to potential new operators.
David Mwangi, editor-in-chief at Kenya’s top betting affiliate, My Betting Sites Kenya, said he expects the number of active operators to shrink in the coming years. He noted that his company’s page on new betting sites in Kenya is among the busiest on their site, given the frequent entry of new operators and the demand by Kenyan bettors for these new bookies.
However, the betting expert believes that could change soon.
“What we have seen in recent times is a sharp rise in the number of new sites entering the country, but we believe that may change if the new bill is passed into law,” Mwangi said.
Some detractors may claim that the tough conditions may close off the market to new operators, but the government will argue that the high deposit will rid the country of mediocre gambling companies and only accommodate operators with very solid financial footing.
To be fair, Kenya needed to do something about the rate at which licenses are granted to new sites. There are more than 100 licensed companies now listed by the Betting Control and Licensing Board, but quite a few of these companies aren’t up to the required standards. Some of the sites lack the basics of user experience, and some are just downright shady.
Kenya is also set to keep the minimum stake for online betting at KSh. 20 after rejecting an amendment from the Senate to lower the figure to KSh. 1.
The senate had argued that a lower minimum wager would make online betting more inclusive, but the MPs opined that inclusiveness would come with the risk of opening up gambling to kids and schoolchildren, who can more easily lay their hands on KSh. 1.
Kenya already has the highest percentage of young gamblers on the continent, and reducing the minimum wage would only set that percentage higher.
The Kenyan government and online betting companies have been engaged in a long-running battle. The authorities are trying to strike a balance between extracting money and other economic benefits from the lucrative industry and protecting its citizens against bad gambling habits and malpractices.
The new KSh. 200 million security deposit could well go a long way in helping with that balance, as it would potentially sift out shady operators, leaving the stronger, reputable ones in the market.
