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Finland is on the verge of becoming one of Europe’s newly regulated gambling markets, marking a historic shift away from the long-standing monopoly system. As the country prepares to implement a licensing model by 2027, many in the industry are asking the same questions: What exactly will change? How will it affect operators, affiliates, and players? And what role will Veikkaus play in this new era?
To help shed light on what’s coming, we spoke with Jari Vähänen, Chairman of the Finnish Gambling Association and former SVP at Veikkaus. With decades of experience and a front-row seat to the reform process, Jari offers unique insight into what the industry can expect—and what it means for the future of gambling in Finland.
Can you tell us about your background and how you became involved in the gambling industry?
I have worked in the gambling industry since the early 1990s. I started in a management position at a horse betting company, from which I moved to the Finnish lottery company Veikkaus. I worked there in several different VP and SVP-level roles. My areas of responsibility included horse and sports betting, digital sales, product development, business development, and international affairs and business. I resigned from Veikkaus in early 2020 and founded The Finnish Gambling Consultants with my ex-colleague.
What inspired you to lead the Finnish Gambling Association, and what does the organization aim to achieve?
We founded the Finnish Gambling Association with Minna Ripatti, the owner of Legal Gaming. Our goal was to provide information about gambling activities independent of gambling companies. Of course, both of our companies have gambling companies as customers, but we have not received funding for the association’s activities from any gambling industry operator or supplier.
Having spent most of your career at Veikkaus, how has your perspective shifted now that you advocate for reforming the system?
I have always been ideologically against monopolies, including when I worked at Veikkaus. As an economist, I know that monopolies are inefficient. However, I have not attacked Veikkaus because I understand very well that the company has suffered from strict regulation for a long time. The strict regulation of Veikkaus is the main reason why the channelization rate of the Finnish gambling system has collapsed to around 50%.
For context, how is the Finnish gambling market currently structured under the monopoly, and why was it set up that way?
Until the end of 2016, Finland had a monopoly of three companies. One company was responsible for casino operations, another for horse betting, and a third for sports betting and lottery operations. With digital development, the gambling companies’ responsibilities became too close to each other, which is why the Finnish state decided to combine all gambling operations under one state-owned company. The current Veikkaus began operations in 2017 and is still responsible for all legal gambling operations in Finland.
What major challenges has the Finnish monopoly model encountered in recent years?
As I stated above, the regulation practically only applies to Veikkaus’ operations. As a result, the company has not kept up with recent developments. Active gambling customers, in particular, have moved to offshore companies. Veikkaus’ gross gaming revenue has fallen from 1.8 billion euros to around 950 million euros in 5–6 years. As a result, the company’s market share has also collapsed. At the same time, the number of people suffering from gambling problems seems to have unfortunately increased.
How has the rise of offshore gambling impacted Veikkaus and consumer protection in Finland?
Veikkaus CEO Olli Sarekoski announced about 2.5 years ago that Veikkaus no longer wants to continue on a monopoly basis if the activities of offshore companies cannot be interfered with. Despite its monopoly position, Veikkaus has not been in an equal position because it has not been able to respond to the increasing competition. Finnish consumer protection measures only target legal activities, namely Veikkaus. Large international offshore companies certainly also take care of consumer protection, but many companies on the market focus only on maximizing profits.
Why do you think previous reforms failed to achieve their goals, and what lessons were learned?
Finland, like [other countries], wanted to stick to the monopoly system. Ten years ago, gambling generated over 1.2 billion euros for the state and beneficiaries. Fear of declining profits was probably the reason why, at that time, politicians were not yet ready to consider switching to a license-based system. The merger of gambling companies, in which I was strongly involved, aimed to remove some of the obstacles to operations. At that time, however, we did not expect the authorities’ supervisory measures to be stricter in the single-company model.
Finland has now decided to end the exclusive monopoly in online gambling. What was the motivation behind this reform – why change the system now?
Based on the bill, Finland will be transitioning to a license-based gambling system in digital casino operations and horse and sports betting by the beginning of 2027, at the latest. In the betting business, the license will also apply to the retail channel. The main reason for the change has been the will of the monopoly company Veikkaus. As I have already stated, the channeling capacity of the Finnish gambling system has collapsed. An alternative solution for increasing the channelization rate could have been a monopoly system in which efforts would have been made to prevent the activities of offshore companies significantly more effectively than at present. However, this option was no longer considered possible, so now Finland is following the example of Denmark and Sweden.
What is the expected timeline for implementing the new licensing system?
I assume the Parliament will approve the new gambling legislation before the summer holidays start, i.e., by the beginning of July. The law will enter into force at the beginning of 2026, after which the application process for gambling licenses will begin. The authorities have estimated that this process can be completed in about 9 months. The new system will probably be implemented in practice from the beginning of 2027. A B2B license is also coming to Finland, but will not be introduced until 2028.
How will the new licensing system be structured? Will Veikkaus still have a role?
The current monopoly is based on law. In the new system, some gambling activities, lottery, and physical casino operations will remain under exclusive rights. The new monopoly will be based on an exclusive license, which can only be granted to a company directly controlled by the state, in practice, Veikkaus.
The gambling license includes all other areas of gambling activities. In Finland, there will be no separate license for betting and digital casino operations, but one license will give permission to engage in all gambling activities.
According to the draft law, an exclusive license holder cannot obtain a gambling license. Therefore, the current Veikkaus will be divided into several companies, in which case the new Veikkaus License company will apply for a gambling license. Veikkaus will consequently continue to be a significant operator in the area of competitive gambling activities.
Which gambling products will be included in the licensing system, and which will remain under monopoly control?
Based on the bill, two exclusive licenses will be issued. One covers physical casino operations, which also include slot machines, which are found in supermarkets and hypermarkets, restaurants, and petrol stations, among other places. The other exclusive license allows lottery operations, which include lottery games and scratch cards. These licenses can also be granted to one company, Veikkaus, in practice.
The gambling license includes digital casino games (card, table and dice games, and digital slots) and sports and horse betting. Betting consists of both fixed-odds and pool-based games. The license also allows the offering of betting products in the retail channel.
What technical and financial requirements will operators need to meet to get a license in Finland?
The exact technical licensing requirements have not yet been published. I assume they will be clear towards the end of this year. However, a few things are already clear. From the beginning of 2028, license companies will only be allowed to use technology and games from suppliers with a Finnish B2B license in their gambling operations. The bill also states that gambling systems must, as a rule, be located in Finland, but exceptional solutions, including cloud services, are still possible.
Some information about the financial licensing conditions is also already available. The cost of applying for a license is not yet clear, but I assume it will be low. The license company will pay an annual supervision fee, which is determined based on the GGR the company receives from Finland. At the cheapest, it is 4000 euros, and the highest cost is 434,000 euros if the GGR is over 50 million euros. In addition, companies pay lottery tax, which is 22% of the GGR.
Responsible gambling has been a big part of the conversation. What safer gambling measures are built into the new reform?
I expected that more responsibility requirements could have been presented. There will be a long list of restrictions on marketing content, but in practice, advertising in mass media will be pretty free. Gambling companies cannot give welcome bonuses; other bonuses cannot be based on gambling activity or volume. Affiliate marketing is wholly prohibited according to the bill. The customer must be able to prevent all gambling, i.e., a centralized gambling prevention system based on the Swedish model is coming to Finland. Customers must set deposit limits for themselves before they can start gambling. However, no upper limit has been defined for deposit limits.
The Government will be given the right to impose restrictions on gambling by decree if the development of gambling problems appears to be negative.
The draft law includes a ban on affiliate marketing. What is your view on this, and could it affect channelisation goals?
The bill is quite good from the perspective of gambling companies that can afford to spend millions of euros on mass media marketing. On the other hand, smaller operators that are used to acquiring customers through affiliates and welcome bonuses will have great difficulty. I think it is likely that many smaller companies will not apply for a Finnish gambling license for this reason.
Suppose the new regulator is unable or unwilling to intervene in illegal supply, where companies operating without a license continue to utilize affiliates and bonuses. In that case, the Finnish system’s channelization rate will not rise near the target level of approximately 90%.
The ban on affiliate marketing aims to prevent the use of influencers and celebrities in gambling marketing, but SEO-based marketing has been partly accidentally blocked. I think this matter may change during the parliamentary proceedings.
What impacts do you anticipate this reform will have on:
- a) Veikkaus’s market share
Veikkaus will be the market leader even in a competitive market, as the company can compete on the same rules as other companies. Veikkaus License’s most significant competitive advantage is its existing customers, which I estimate the company will have 1–1.5 million when operations begin. - b) Tax revenue for the state
I believe total government revenue from gambling will remain at about the current level or even increase slightly. However, I do not believe it will ever reach the 1.2 B€ level where it peaked. - c) The affiliate marketing sector
Even if the affiliate marketing ban remains in place, this activity will continue. This will benefit those companies that continue to operate as black market operators. This will happen if the regulator does not find effective ways to intervene. - d) The experience for Finnish players
The situation of active Finnish customers will improve as the supply increases. With the opening up of competition, the marketing of gambling will increase significantly, and this may cause a negative development in public opinion towards gambling, as has happened in Sweden.
What has been the response from international operators so far? Are they showing strong interest in the Finnish market?
The change in the Finnish gambling system interests at least significant international gambling companies, which have established their own lobbying organization, The Gambling Industry Association, in Finland. Gaming companies are now waiting for the Parliament’s final decision before they decide to apply for a Finnish license.
What would be your advice to international operators and affiliates who are considering entering the Finnish market?
I cannot advise affiliates because the bill is complicated for them. Affiliates already serving the Finnish market know their possibilities better than I do.
In my consultancy work, I focus primarily on operators and, to some extent, on suppliers. My basic message is that each market has special characteristics worth investigating, and you must be prepared to modify the existing operating model. It is also good to understand that the current monopoly company will be a very strong competitor. Finns gamble heavily per capita, so the country is a very interesting market considering its size.
Where can industry professionals follow updates on the reform process?
You can contact me for more information on LinkedIn. I also have a blog – Gambling Guru – where you can follow the latest developments.
