In a new edition of Game Makers, the interview series in which people who are committed to a safe gambling market have their say, VNLOK speaks with Greg Papanastasiou. He works as Chief Risk and Compliance Officer and responsible gaming (RG) representative at Play North, which is active in the Netherlands with the online casino Kansino.
For Game Makers, industry association Licensed Dutch Online Gambling Providers (VNLOK) spoke with Greg Papanastasiou. He has more than ten years of experience in management and C-level positions focused on regulation, responsible gaming, and anti-money laundering measures.
In the interview, Papanastasiou shared his insights on the challenges of the online gambling market, and specifically the market in the Netherlands. He is currently working as Chief Risk and Compliance Officer at Play North, the company behind the legal online casino Kansino. There, he leads the four teams that deal with regulation and compliance, anti-money laundering (AML), responsible gaming (RG), fraud, payments, and verifications.
These teams all have an important role in risk management and regulatory compliance. According to Papanastasiou, given the large volumes, it is quite complex to keep online gambling safe:
“A provider with tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of active players must take into account a ‘risk group’, which is usually between 2 and 10 percent of active customers. This quickly translates into several thousand players who require intensive monitoring, with suitable monitoring tools and HR capacity. These players must be closely monitored, resulting in millions of transactions per month. It is virtually impossible to do that without the right expertise and technology.”
Greg Papanastasiou
Measures in the Netherlands
Papanastasiou also shared his vision on the legislation in the Netherlands, where the necessary changes have been implemented since the opening of the online gambling market in 2021. However, he indicates that, despite the major changes such as betting limits and increased gambling tax, it is important to ensure stability in the market.
This way, players and providers can be given sufficient time to adapt to the new situation. He also believes that generic measures are rarely effective, because all players are affected. And that while more than 90% of players do not exhibit problematic behavior.
These players must now provide certain (sensitive) information for no valid reason. This can lead to frustration and possibly even a step towards the illegal offer. According to Papanastasiou, you have to protect the vulnerable players, but that does not happen by treating everyone the same.
When asked what he would like people outside the sector to understand about his work, he says the following:
“Maintaining a safe playing environment is extremely complex. It’s about the right balance between technology, human control and continuous legal monitoring. We do everything we can to protect players, but that must be done in a sensible, data-driven and workable manner. Otherwise you run the risk of causing more problems than you solve.”
Greg Papanastasiou
The full interview with Greg Papanastasiou can be read on the VNLOK website.
