Online gambling in Malta is booming: revenue in 2017 € 1.1 billion

While the rest of Europe is struggling with legislation and endless discussions, Malta is reaping the harvest of a different approach towards online gambling. In many countries there is still no proper law to regulate online gambling, and due to all hesitations there are still countries where it is not allowed at all. On Malta they have been able to profit from all the indecisiveness in Europe by offering licenses for online gambling. And that step has been bearing fruit for a long time. Because not only is everyone working according to the rules, the Mediterenean island is also earning a lot of money.

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) recently published its annual report for 2017 which shows that the gaming industry has contributed more than a whopping € 1.1 billion to the national economy. Not bad for an island with only 436,000 inhabitants. Let’s have a closer look on how Malta is doing this.

11.3% of the Maltese economy comes from online gambling

The island is an attractive destination because of a legal and fiscal infrastructure that is specially equipped for online gambling. There is also a lot of expertise available in Malta and laws based on years of experience are active. So many online Casino operators flock to Malta from all over Europe to be able to offer online games of chance. The importance of the online gambling market for the Maltese economy is evident from the fact that gaming has become the fourth most important sector in the country. Gaming now represents 11.3 percent of the total economy and according to the MGA it will play an even greater role in the future. Predictions show an increase of 8-13 percent per year in the expenses of licensees and employment in the sector will increase by 10 percent.

Strong rise gaming operators

By the end of last year there were 287 gaming operators in the MGA books, 28 more than in 2016. The casino industry in turn generated a turnover increase of 14 percent. With this, the tiny island puts down impressive figures. While the Maltese state treasury is getting fuller, other European countries see how millions of euros are lost every year by money that disappears through the backdoor. A recent Austrian report showed that 65% of Austrian revenue from online games of chance disappears to foreign providers all because of bad legislation. Perhaps other countries should take a closer look on how Malta is dealing with the whole online gambling industry and law making instead of having pointless debates about something that is going to stay anyway. Might aswell embrace it by regulating the legit operators and suing the rogue ones.