ROMANIA
being accessed from Romanian territory or by Romanian players. The new legislation does not detail the technical measures that need to be put into place by B2B licensees and technically the regulator should issue an order clarifying this new regime; Land-based slot-machines have been restricted from all localities with less than 15,000 inhabitants as part of a legislative change that entered into force in April 2024. This new restriction created significant turmoil in the land-based sector where numerous operators were forced to shut down their operations or create an entirely new business model. In order to limit the impact created by this new restriction, certain legislative proposals currently being debated in Parliament are meant to reduce the tax -
burden on the land-based operators affected by the restriction. The gambling industry is familiar with regular legislative and rule changes and the new pieces of regulation in Romania are part of a trend which may be interpreted in multiple manners. On the one hand, increased regulation inherently shows that the industry is growing as a whole and that operators are managing to broaden the appeal of their products to attract new categories of consumers. On the other hand, the increase in gambling taxes (which may be noted throughout Europe) can be seen to have a stifling effect on the industry since start-up operators might face significant barriers to entry while the traditional titans in the industry are able consolidate their positions even further.
ANA-MARIA BACIU Managing Partner, Baciu Partners For more information contact ana-maria.baciu@baciupartners.ro +40 31 437 80 13
ANDREI COSMA Partner, Baciu Partners
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker