The LGA (Lotteries and Gaming Authority) of Malta is the governing body of online gaming and Malta gambling . In 2004 the regulatory laws were restructured which brought about four distinct categories for gambling licenses.
Malta Gambling Categories
Class I
Governing games of chance and casino operators and games utilizing a random number generator.
Class II
Restricted for online sports and betting.
Class III
Any Malta affiliate based operators including advertisers and promoters who operate within Malta.
Class IV
Reserved for those Companies that are in control of remote gaming operations hardware but do not take the role of remote gaming operators.
With these in place in 2005, a regulatory body was formed as the Malta Remote Gaming Council. They are responsible for the support and service providers as well as remote gaming operations that are based here.
Malta Gambling Regulation
Malta is an independent country; however, it maintains close ties with the UK. In September 2007, the UK recognized the Malta gambling regulation standards and accepted them for inclusion on their white list. The UK white list upholds a standard that all jurisdictions named on it must have consumer protection standards and proper gaming regulation. The benefit of being on the UK white list means that one can advertise and promote their services to the UK residents.
With Malta being recognized by the UK, more parties became interested in obtaining licenses from Malta.
Malta Allows US Gamblers
One significant factor about Malta is their upholding of the free market when it comes to internet gambling regulation. As such, this means that Malta does not recognize the gaming laws of the USA. Therefore, they will accept US players. This adds to supporting the view of the UK and European in respect to the stance that the US has taken on the global gaming industry.
Malta is to be commended on their setting and enforcement of their gaming rules and responsible gaming position. There are numerous rules that license holders must adhere to. These rules include the overall operation and technical aspects. These rules ensure that the operation of the gaming not only runs smoothly but the integrity of Malta and the protection of the players are safe guarded.
In addition to this, there are numerous rules in place for player protection. For example, funds of the players are kept separate from the license holders’ funds. All information regarding a player’s account and the financial institution is open to disclosure to the LGA.
These are just an example of the types of protection and rules that have been put into play regarding Malta’s stance on gambling. It is easy to see why the UK would accept the inclusion of Malta on their white list.
Although this is one of the major incentives for operators to seek out licensing in Malta, it must be mentioned that the low licensing fee as well as taxes are most inviting as well. The combination has led to an overall respect for the gambling regulation and Malta gambling governing body.