Belgian Gaming Commission names new president, sets weekly online gambling deposit limits

The Belgian Gaming Commission (BGC) has imposed a mandatory weekly EUR 500 (USD 542) online gambling deposit limit as a new president takes over.

Magistrate Magali Clavie, formerly president of the Superior Council of Justice, has been named president of the commission. The position needed to be been filled by a member of the judiciary, to be approved by her fellow judges and receive support from the Council of Ministers. She will run the commission assisted by interim director Eva De Koninck, who was appointed last month.

Clavie replaces Etienne Marique, who stayed in office past his planned retirement date last year, after 19 years with the commission, pending a replacement.

As for the deposit limit decision, players can request a lower limit to be imposed on their accounts. This kind of reduction can be requested through the gambling website and will be made effective immediately. The maximum limit of EUR 500 can later be restored if the player wants. However, this change will come into effect after three days, which would avoid the possibility of gamblers chasing their losses.

Furthermore, the BGC recently advised players to deal with their temptation to gamble more while they are experiencing a lockdown. Self-isolation may force people to find more time for speculative activities and start compulsive gambling. The COVID-19 outbreak has led to a large-scale shutdown of retail begetting offices, casinos, betting kiosks, cafes, newsagents and slot halls in the country but online gambling options are still accessible to users.

The BGC announced last week that it would extend the retail gambling shutdown untill April 19th on the Belgian government’s advice. The government has also offered retail gambling operations tax breaks which will be 1/12th of their annual fee. The tax break will be applicable for each month during the lockdown period.