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Vixio announces the finalists for the 2023 Global Regulatory Awards
Now in its seventh year, the GRAs recognise and celebrate the achievements of individuals, teams and organisations across the gambling industry who have excelled in compliance, corporate social responsibility and safer gambling.
“We received a record number of submissions, making this year’s awards the most competitive since inception. The quality of nominations demonstrates how the industry views the importance of compliance and the ongoing requirement to maintain compliance excellence,” stated Mike Woolfrey, CEO of Vixio. “Thank you to the judging panel for your hard work and rigorous and independent judging to ensure the awards are hotly contested. Those who made the shortlist should consider this a significant achievement.” Woolfrey further stated.
The 2023 Global Regulatory Awards presentation will take place on November 29th at the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London. Due to the popularity of the awards, tables will sell out fast. Vixio advises booking now to ensure you don’t miss out.
The official 2023 shortlist is as follows:
AML/MLR Professional of the Year
- Antonello Cuschieri, Greentube
- Camila Caresi, Pay4Fun
- Laura Kolens–Matley, Flutter Entertainment
- Ross Ferguson, Genting Casinos
Award for Commitment to Compliance by an Affiliate Company
- Better Collective
- Gambling.com Group
Award for Outstanding Contribution to Safer Gambling – Category Sponsor: San Manuel Tribal Gaming Commission
- 888 William Hill
- Betsmart Consulting
- Betting and Gaming Council
- Casino Guru
- DraftKings
- Entain
- EPIC Risk Management
- Gauselmann
- Genting Casinos
- Kaizen Gaming
- Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation
- YGAM
Award for Outstanding Individual Contribution to Responsible Gambling – Category Sponsor: BetConstruct
- Aaron GlynWilliams, Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation
- Anna Davies, Metropolitan Gaming
- Martin Lycka, Entain
- Paul Buck, EPIC Risk Management
Best Regulatory Law Firm of the Year
- Bird & Bird
- CCA Law Firm
- CMS
- Greenberg Traurig
- GTG Advocates
- Herzog Fox & Neeman
- Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm
- RM Legal
- Segev LLP
- Simion & Baciu
Best Regulatory Lawyer or In–House Counsel of the Year
- Alcina de Oliveira Alves, CCA Law Firm
- Andy Danson, Bird & Bird
- Cosmina Maria Simion, Simion & Baciu
- Emeline d’Ollone, Catena Media
- Erica Okerberg, Greenberg Traurig
- Filipe Mayer, CCA Law Firm
- John Kyriakides and John Broupis, Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm
- Matthew Plampton, Bally’s Interactive
- Sue Dawson, Light & Wonder
- Thalia Siamani, OKTO
Chief Compliance Officer of the Year – Category Sponsor: DraftKings
- Alex Henderson, GIMO
- Ashley Padgett, Flutter Entertainment
- David Webb, BetConstruct
- Jimmy Howard, Metropolitan Gaming
- Tom Cunningham, National Indian Gaming Commission
- Zeljka Perkovic, Huddle
Compliance Innovator of the Year
- ArdentSky
- Compliable
- Department of Trust
- Docaposte
- Neccton
- OneComply
- Pay4Fun
- SQR Group
Compliance Professional of the Year
- Blaine Preston, Light & Wonder
- Christina Thakor–Rankin, 1710 Gaming
- David Webb, BetConstruct
- Helen Davies, Flutter Entertainment
- Jessica Feil, OpenBet
- Jimmy Howard, Metropolitan Gaming
- Karine Kocharyan, BetConstruct
- Mike Robbins, Gaming Laboratories International
- Roxana Numa, Department of Trust
- Roxane Scicluna, Greentube
- Sara Condo, IGT
- Sarah–Jayne Van Greune, Ilixium
Compliance Rising Star Special Award
- Adelayo Banjo, Games Global
- Antoine Vandemoortele, Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation
- Daniel Spencer, EPIC Risk Management
- Jessica Keogh, Games Global
- Johannes Ingi Kolbeinsson, PAYSTRAX
- Melanie Dunmar, Design Works Gaming
- Oana–Adina Rusu, Greentube
- Thomas Zhong, IMG Arena
Compliance Team of the Year
- BetConstruct
- Estoril Sol Digital
- EveryMatrix
- Flutter Entertainment
- Gauselmann
- Genting Casinos
- Gaming Laboratories International
- Huddle Tech
- Kaizen Gaming
- Metropolitan Gaming
- Scientific Games
- Videoslots
Head of Regulatory Affairs/Government Relations of the Year
- Adam Torres, San Manuel Tribal Gaming Commission
- Antony Gevisser, Super Group
- Charmaine Hogan, Playtech
- David Foster, Entain
- Jessica Feil, OpenBet
Legal Team of the Year
- Campeón Gaming
- EveryMatrix
- Kambi
- Light & Wonder
- Oryx Gaming
- Paysafe
- Segev LLP
- Soft2Bet
Outstanding Contribution to Safer Game Design
- Design Works Gaming
- Light & Wonder
- Print Studios
Outstanding Contribution to Sports Betting Integrity Award
- Entain
- Flutter Entertainment
- Genius Sports
- Neccton
- Sportradar
Payment Service or Solution Provider of the Year
- Freemarket
- Ilixium
- OKTO
- Paramount Commerce
- Passport Technology
- Pay4Fun
- Paysafe
- PAYSTRAX
Regtech Provider of the Year
- BetConstruct
- Department of Trust
- Gaming Innovation Group
- GeoComply
- IDnow
- Mindway AI
- Neccton
- OneComply
- Playtech
- Rightlander
- SG:certified
- Synalogik
Regulatory Initiative of the Year – Category Sponsor: Docaposte
- DGOJ (Spain)
- iGaming Ontario
- San Manuel Tribal Gaming Commission
- Slovak Gambling Regulatory Authority
Responsible Approach to Advertising or Marketing Award
- Flutter Entertainment
- Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation
- Slovak Gambling Regulatory Authority
Responsible Gambling Service or Solution Provider of the Year – Category Sponsor: Kaizen Gaming
- Betknowmore UK
- Department of Trust
- EPIC Risk Management
- Focal Research Consultants Limited
- Gamban
- GamCare
- GBG
- Gordon Moody
- LexisNexis Risk Solutions
- Mindway AI
- Neccton
- YGAM
The 2023 recipient of the Compliance Lifetime Achievement Special Award, sponsored by eCogra, will be named via a separate special announcement prior to the Global Regulatory Awards ceremony.
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The studio picks up three major nominations going into 2026
ELA Games is proud to announce that it has received three major nominations at the European iGaming Awards 2026, reflecting the studio’s creative direction, performance-driven development, and leadership in innovation.
The nominations include:
- Most Innovative Slot Game — Joker Winpot
- Slot Game of the Year — Joker Winpot
- Rising Star — Marharyta Yerina, Managing Director of ELA Games
Joker Winpot Shines
Joker Winpot has continued to perform spectacularly, quickly becoming one of the studio’s standout titles. Its strong visual identity, simple-to-understand mechanics, and innovative format with the Winpot feature make it a game that gives players agency with high replayability.
Operators who have connected to the ELA Games catalogue have reported significant increases in key metrics following the adoption of Joker Winpot in their casino lobbies, including a GGR increase of +1128%, Actives: +878%, and Turnover: +1517%. These impressive results have helped the game gain recognition among peers, with it being shortlisted for two major categories at the upcoming European iGaming Awards.
Value in Creativity
ELA Games’ core operational philosophy of blending bold creativity with user- and operator-focused performance has propelled the studio to become a significant newcomer in the industry. Players recognise ELA Games’ signature visually rich art style and actively seek the studio’s games out in casino lobbies, as evidenced by impressive year-on-year growth.
Marharyta Yerina, Managing Director, was also nominated for the “Rising Star” individual award. Her contributions to the iGaming space and leadership in managing ELA Games as one of the fastest-growing studios have garnered her acclaim amongst her peers.
Marharyta commented on the nominations, “Receiving three nominations at an award ceremony reflects every one of our team members’ excellence and commitment to setting new standards in the industry. Joker Winpot continued to exceed our expectations and shows what’s possible when you develop a game with intention, user experiences, and operator performance in mind. I’m also honoured to receive the Rising Star nomination: we will continue delivering content that truly matters for players and partners alike.”
The post ELA Games Scoops Up Triple Nominations at the European iGaming Awards 2026 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has warned that proposed new tax measures for the UK gambling industry could lead to a significant rise in harmful illegal gambling.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) admitted that the tax plans will reduce projected yield by around one-third, including £500 million lost by 2029-30 as consumers switch away from the regulated sector and towards the black market.
The OBR also states that around 90% of the duty increases will be passed on to consumers through higher prices or reduced payouts, making regulated products less attractive. It warns this will distort the market and drive more customers towards the illegal black market, where there are no protections, no tax contributions and no safer gambling checks.
Despite these warnings, the Government continues to claim the measures will raise £1.1 billion, a figure that industry experts, independent analysts including EY, and the BGC believe will not be achieved.
Grainne Hurst, Chief Executive of the Betting and Gaming Council, said: “The Government’s own figures show these tax plans will cause significant damage. Industry analysis based on modelling from EY finds that nearly 17,000 high-tech jobs will be lost across online betting and gaming, with over £6 billion in stakes diverted to the black market – a 140% increase in its size.
“These proposals also threaten shop closures, further job losses and a less competitive online market, meaning lower, not higher, long-term tax revenues. They also push more customers to the black market, where there are no protections, no taxes and no safeguards.”
The regulated betting and gaming sector currently contributes £6.8 billion to the UK economy, supports over 109,000 jobs, and provides £4 billion in taxes, including vital funding for racing, sport and tourism. But further tax rises threaten to weaken one of the UK’s most internationally competitive digital industries at a time when the illegal market is expanding rapidly.
The post BGC: New Tax Measures Could Spark a Sharp Increase in Harmful Illegal Gambling appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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The Danish Gambling Authority’s statistics for October 2025 show a decrease in the total gambling spend in comparison to the same month last year. However, the betting market was the only market to experience a decrease.
The total gambling spend in October 2025 amounted to DKK 599 million, which corresponds to a decrease of 3.4 per cent compared to October 2024. The statistics show that the decrease for the total gambling market is due to a large fluctuation in the betting market in October 2025 compared to October 2024. The betting market had a decrease of 46.0 per cent. Online casinos experienced the largest increase of 24.4 per cent, while land-based (physical) casinos and gaming machines experienced an increase of 6.0 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively.
The post Spillemyndigheden: Large decrease in betting consumption in October appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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