Ireland is to ban credit card transactions for online gambling
From the 14th April 2020, the UK made it illegal to use credit cards for online gambling related transactions and now Ireland will be following suit. Ireland are currently reviewing their gambling legislation and James Brown, a junior minister in the Department of Justice and Equality, has revealed that credit card use for online gambling will soon come to an end.
New Regulatory Body
Speaking about the ban, Mr Brown said that credit card gambling should have been banned before now, but when the ban does come into practice, it will be done either as part of the new gambling legislation or as part of a new regulatory body who will have the power to bring the ban into force.
This new regulatory body will be one of the most significant changes to the Irish gambling industry since 2007 and it is expected to be formed before the end of the year.
Credit Card Gambling
For years, campaigners have been calling for a credit card ban for online gambling in order to protect players from gambling related harm and from getting into debt due to gambling. The UK Gambling Commission carried out research before the UK brought in the ban, which showed that around 800,000 people were using credit cards to fund their gambling. From this number, around 20% of these people could be classed as having a gambling addiction.
Paddy Power
Flutter Entertainment, who operate Paddy Power, Betfair and SkyBet, paved the way after they announced in February this year, that they would no longer be accepting credit card payments on their sites. They announced they would also be introducing a range of measure to provide a safer gambling environment and help to protect players from gambling related harm.
The new Irish Gambling Bill is expected to be released later this summer, so we’ll bring you further information as it becomes available.
