Isle of Man holds strong cards: 30% surge in licensing demands

The Isle of Man notes record number of businesses wanting to relocate to the Island these past 12 months

The Isle of Man has seen a significant increase in demand for gaming licences from online operators. A 30% increase saw the number of licensees to be supervised by the Gambling Supervision Commission now at 55.

This past week, Isle of Man Service providers reported an uptick in enquiries from businesses wanting to relocate. There has been an increase of 21 new licences in the past 12 months in comparison to 8 licence approvals in 2019.

The figures came to a surge with the recent regulatory changes in alternate jurisdictions, and the Island’s accurate handling of COVID-19.

Steve Brennan, Chief Executive of The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission, said:

“We are exceptionally busy at the minute processing a significant rise in the number of applications for online gambling operators.

We continued to work throughout lockdown, and over the last 10 months, we have received or completed a considerable number of applications. By the time we have closed those out and added recent applications, we will have 60 licences to supervise.”

Speaking on why operators are choosing the Isle of Man, Jade Zorab, Director of Amber Gaming, stated that the Isle of Man has proven to be at the forefront of the more notable eGaming jurisdictions over the years.

It has a combination of a stable political and economic environment, low tax and advanced IT infrastructure in addition to a cluster of experienced and reliable professional organisations . She said that it was all of this which has created a compelling proposition for eGaming companies both locally and further afield.

Speaking about the Island itself she also responded that it offers a flexible licensing regime with a pragmatic and efficient regulator, which is especially valuable during a time where there is so much global uncertainty and regulatory changes in several other jurisdictions which brings the prospect of significant operational challenges.

Given the Island’s strong reputation and open and innovative approach in the evolving gaming landscape, the future outlook is positive and it is no surprise that the Isle of Man is experiencing an influx of eGaming ventures, “which we are proud to support.”

Last October SiGMA News reported that prominent Isle of Man-based services provider Affinity Group noted a huge increase from POGOs considering moving their operations from the Philippines due to a recent tax hike on licences. The strong regulation around player protection provides a comforting shoulder to PSP’s, banks and investors.

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