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ISSUE 3
JANUARY 2009
ISSUE 3
JANUARY 2009
Gaming Code Review part 2
Gaming Code cont.
In this, the second of two articles covering the proposed new gaming code of practice, we continue to review the most important points of the proposal.
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by Steven Caetano
Operating Procedures Internal Controls
The Act creates an obligation for licensees to establish an effective system of internal controls and procedures. Although it is recognised that operators have adopted different standards for different procedures and internal controls pursuant to their individual circumstances and business requirements it is necessary for operators and industries at large to make such information readily available to the Gambling Commissioner. Operating procedures and controls should be proportionate to the scale and nature of the licence holders’ gambling activities. Generally speaking, these should address: Corporate structure and reporting; Internal and external audit arrangements; Accounting and financial control standards; Customer and transaction controls including security; Business continuity/disaster recovery plans; Antimoney laundering arrangements; Age verification procedures; Problem gambling and self-exclusion policies; Customer complaints arrangements; System testing and security arrangements; and Web content; Needless to say, a comprehensive published operating procedure manual or internal controls booklet is considered as basic good governance and will facilitate internal audit by the Gambling Commissioner.
Minimum Age for Gambling
by Steven Caetano
people may now access remote gambling facilities (including mobile gaming) A potential requirement of the Code could inclusion of the above information on the cause the operator to display on each homepage only is now seen as sufficient. homepage a link or links to a page that As a consequence, the final version of the includes:Code could require Licence Holders to ensure that these motif emblems and those (a) Full name of the licence holder and associates with problem gambling advice address from which it carries on and any other warranty assurance or business pursuant to its Gibraltar warning links or terms or conditions are licence; displayed on every page preceding and (b) A statement that the licence holder following the actual betting pages. is licensed under the Act by the Mobile Gaming Gibraltar Licensing Authority or Government of Gibraltar; Given recent trends in the technology and
and
the Regulatory Return is seen as a primary indicator of the licensee’s scale and range of activities to enable adequate supervision. Suitable security and confidentiality measures would be applied by all parties concerned in accordance with applicable data protection and privacy laws. It remains to be seen whether the industry will concur with the Gambling Commissioner that quarterly as opposed to bi annual or annual returns are adequate enough, and quarterly returns could be seen as disproportionate, especially when the Gambling Commissioner is already empowered under the Act to request any type of information related to the gambling activities taking place at any time on reasonable notice.
Data Protection Measures
The Data Protection Act 2004 applies to all Licensees. The final version of the code Age verification measures should be in may well regurgitate the main obligations place and these include, as a minimum, of the Data Protection Act and related individuals’ names, age and address. All privacy provisions. operators are expected to take reasonable steps to prevent a person under the Complaints minimum permitted age from All Licence Holders are required to participating in gambling activities and promptly enquire into any complaint these also include free play. Licence about a gambling transaction made to holders are expected to take reasonable them by a participant or referred to them measures to test the effectiveness of their by the Gambling Commissioner. systems and permit the use of parental Wherever possible, complaints should be blocking and filtering systems. investigated by the Operator and brought Transaction Record Keeping to the attention of the Gambling and Provisional Accounts Commissioner but only if the Licence The final version of the Code could Holders’ internal complaints procedures require each licence holder to provide the have failed to resolve the issue at first Gambling Commissioner with quarterly instance. Exceptions to this would include statistical financial returns in respect of very serious complaints involving each licensed activity. The data comprising substantial sums of money or issues of
public interest. In this case, it is recommended that the complaint or issue incapable of being resolved be brought to the Gambling Commissioner’s attention at the earliest available opportunity. Kindly note that the term “Gambling Transaction” in this context is given a broad interpretation including, the wide administration of gaming accounts, marketing and any matters designed to affect the gambling transactions themselves. In addition, Licence Holders will be expected to have in place a system for recording and examining customer or third party complaints. This should include adequate resources to address complaints expeditiously, access to an independent adjudication process for appropriate disputes and a means of maintaining a record of all complaints that can be made available to the Gambling Commissioner as and when reasonably required.
Registration of Participants The Act requires operators to ensure that all their players are registered with them in the form specified under the Act (and indeed the Licence Agreement). This is a minimum standard imposed by both the terms of conditions of Licence and the Act and requires the players full name, residential address and age. Needless to say, this information must be kept by the operator in accordance with data protection principles currently applicable. Random checks and dip sampling of accounts by the Gambling Commissioner and other examinations would be subject to proportionate and ad hoc recording.
JANUARY 2009
ISSUE 3
mobile, telephone gambling a reminder that the gambling is provided under the agreed terms and conditions on the website should be acknowledged by the player.
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Similarly, mobile phone gambling may only draw on funds credited via the parent website or by voice call arrangements where the Customer Services Operator has sight of the player’s gambling account and history. Therefore, it is a condition precedent to the use of mobile phones in gambling under the new Code to conduct every registration, procedure and avail oneself of the terms and conditions of methodology by which gaming is currently gaming through a computer in the offered to the public at large the proposed traditional sense. code of practice recognises the use of This article is necessarily limited in its mobile telephones and notes the scope and, in light of the fact that the additional challenges presented by this subject matter of the article is currently in method of remote gambling. proposal form, regard must be had to the
(c) A statement that the licence holder is regulated under the Act by the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner (in this regard the final version of the Code could require a live link be set up to the GRA site); and (d) A statement in respect of the permitted age for gambling. Therefore, it is regarded as good practice to include the emblem of the Government of Gibraltar as a link to the Government website and a separate link on the motif of the GRA to the GRA website which would serve as a means of indicating to users that the licence holder is indeed regulated by this body in addition to being licensed by the Government. Given the complexity of various Licence Holders’ websites and web operating structures and given the diversity in which
It is likely that the code will impose preconditions to facilitate mobile gaming. For example, operators may only allow players to use mobile facilities if the player has first registered to play via the licensee’s website and in doing so acknowledges that gambling by mobile phone should be done in conjunction with an internet account and not in isolation of it. This would mean in practice that the player will have to register via a PC. In particular new deposits to the account should only be possible through the website or through voice communication with a live agent. In addition, at the commencement of any
its continuing success on the international stage and of the growing number of awards its various teams are attracting in a wide range of practice areas. ISOLAS has ranked and continues to rank consistently as a
By Christian Rocca
possible changes that may be effected to the actual code. ISOLAS will continue to monitor developments in this area and will continue to keep its clients and partners up to speed on any developments.”
ISOLAS recognised once more ISOLAS has recently been informed of its nomination as “Best Banking and Finance Team-Gibraltar & Spain 2009” by European CEO Magazine. In addition to this nomination, ISOLAS is very proud of
Communiqué Introduction
leading law firm in various fields, including M&A, Banking and Shipping, in the most prestigious legal directories such as Chambers Global, Legal 500 and European Legal Experts.
Associated with
www.gibraltarlawyers.com Portland House Glacis Road PO Box 204 Gibraltar Tel +350 200 78363 Regulated by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission. Licence Numbers FSC00277B FSC00276B
New Year is a time for change, hope and hard work. Looking back to 2008 and, in particular, the last few months, there have been a number of important developments for Gibraltar Participants from the 24hr and ISOLAS which, Relay For Life, Gibraltar of course, are covered for Cancer Research in the third edition of our newsletter, the Communique. I’m also very happy to note that this publication is going from strength to strength, with a growing number of partners and clients asking to receive it as soon as we print it. What’s more, we’ve had a very helpful response from our readers as to how we might improve and enhance the Communique. In response to that, this edition includes an article from one of our professional partners, Credit Suisse, about cash investment options in the current financial crisis environment. In future editions we will be continuing this partnership and would be grateful to hear from any reader who might have an idea for an item in our Communique. Simply let us know and we’ll be glad to consider it. An important development in the Gibraltar story came on the 18th December 2008 in
On a personal level, I’m very proud of the firm’s participation in September in the very successful 24hr Relay For Life Gibraltar, organised by Cancer Research UK. the shape of a judgment of the European Court of First Instance annulling a decision previously made by the European Commission in respect of Gibraltar’s proposed tax reform. Our article on this deals with the details and explains how important this decision is for Gibraltar’s future as an International Finance Centre. On a personal level, I’m very proud of the firm’s participation in September in the very successful 24hr Relay For Life Gibraltar, organised by Cancer Research UK. The event was extremely well attended and ISOLAS fielded a team of more than twenty participants who, over a 24hr period, took turns to lap the athletics track at Victoria Stadium. As part of our continuing participation in events of this nature a few members of the team and I have been contemplating a challenge to raise funds for the PJ Isola Foundation. On the cards is a long distance charity cycle so watch this space for news of our training and fund raising.
Finally, I hope that 2009 brings the recovery and stabilisation of the financial markets and the confidence which, during the latter part of 2008, dropped to unprecedented levels. We remain at the service of you and your clients and look forward to a 2009 full of prosperity and positive development.
In this issue Page
1. Introduction 2. Cash Is King 3. Arresting Ships In Gibraltar Court Of First Instance Decison 4. Protecting Their Own Pillars Of Hercules 5. Gaming Code Review Part 2