Casino News: Colombia rejects new online gambling tax

The country's Congress has rejected a bill to introduce a 19% VAT on iGaming operators. The move was part of tax reforms aimed at eliminating the budget deficit in 2025. The government expected the new tax to bring in about $0.5 billion per year.

The finance minister claimed that the new tax would level the playing field for operators in Colombia, but lawmakers fear that its introduction could lead to an outflow of legal operators and negatively affect the industry. Currently, online gambling accounts for 47% of all tax revenue from the gambling sector in the country.

Curacao Court Declares Casbit Group Bankrupt

The company, which previously operated two online casinos, Lalabet and Jungliwin, was unable to pay out €620,000 in customer winnings. Despite the parent company's problems, Lalabet and Jungliwin continue to operate but under the management of SkyGrow Group Limitada from Costa Rica.

Earlier, the Curacao court declared Blockdance B.V. and Small House B.V., which operate the online casino ВС.GАМЕ, bankrupt.

Illegal Online Casinos in the Netherlands Are Breaking Popularity Records in 2024

According to Google Trends, Lalabet and Jungliwin online casinos are among the most frequently searched ones on Google. On average, users google these sites about 700 thousand times per month. The situation in various provinces of the Netherlands is as follows:

• Overijssel: Lalabet 9th place, up 500%
• North Holland: Lalabet 8th place, up 600%
• Utrecht: Jungliwin 7th place, up 850%
• Utrecht: Jungliwin Casino 8th place, up 850%

Qbet, which operates illegally in the Netherlands, also collects an average of around 74,000 Google searches. For comparison, in 2023, this figure was 27,000. Among all licensed operators in the Netherlands, BetCity, TOTO, and Unibet have the highest number of monthly searches.

Gambling Insider Publishes Shortlist for the Global Gaming Awards EMEA 2025

The awards will recognize the best representatives of the iGaming industry in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The shortlisted nominees for key categories include:

Best Betting Operator

• 1xBet
• Betsson
• Betway
• Bet365
• Novibet
• Comeon!
• Betano
• 888Africa
• Betika
• Skybet

Best Online Casino

• BetMGM
• Hard Rock Casino NL
• Netbet
• Betsson
• Coolbet
• PokerStars Casino
• Casumo
• Wildz
• Mycasino
• Casinobarcelona

Best iGaming Provider

• Spribe
• Greentube
• Amusnet
• Evolution
• Creedroomz
• IGT PlayDigital
• Pragmatic Play
• Bragg
• Playtech
• Light Wonder

Best Online Slot

• Piggy Prizes Wish of Riches
• 36 Coins
• Law of Gilgamesh
• Aztec Clusters
• Jump! 2
• Ancient Tumble
• Squid Game: One Lucky Day
• Razor Returns
• Rich Wilde the Tome of Insanity
• Valley of the Gods

Best Affiliate Program

• Bet365 Partners
• Campeon Affiliates
• 1xBet Partners
• Boomerang Partners
• Mate Affiliates
• Miomedia Affiliates
• PIN-UP Partners
• V.Partners
• Growe Partners
• Alpha Affiliates

The winners will be announced on January 20, 2025, the first day of the ICE exhibition in Barcelona.