Betfair Takes Holland to Court over Blocked Access

Leading UK-based online betting firm, Betfair, has surprised many in the online gambling world by its recent decision to take the Dutch Government to court, claiming that its is responsible for unfairly trying to block the country's banks from processing the payment of bets made online by Dutch citizens.

According to reports, Betfair is claiming that it has been applying to the Dutch Government for an online gambling license since 2004, but with little success. Also, the online betting firm is claiming that the Dutch government's move to manipulate its banks is nothing more than a 'desperate and protectionist' move.

Betfair is claiming that by forcing the country's bank to block bets from foreign-owned online gambling concerns, the government is unfairly protecting its state-owned gambling company, De Lotto. For many years De Lotto has been the only gambling concern in the country, which has made it a monopoly.

The Dutch Ministry of Justice disseminated letters to all of the country's banks claiming that 'it was inappropriate for banks to provide facilities to the providers of illegal games of chance.' It went on to urge senior bank officials to actively end their dealings with online gambling operators 'within a reasonable timeframe'.

Said Betfair managing director, Mark Davies, in a statement, 'The Ministry of Justice's actions fly in the face of the EU principles of open and fair competition. The government's objective to shut out foreign operators while feather-bedding domestic monopolies and protecting a cozy cartel cannot be allowed to continue.'

Not only has Betfair instituted the lawsuit against the Dutch government, but has also lodged formal complaint with the European Commission (EC). The EC is currently spearheading a move across all European Union (EU) member states to regulate online gambling with the aim of creating a 'fair playing field'.

According to Betfair, the timing of the letters sent out to the Dutch banks was 'questionable', considering that the European Court of Justice - which is handling lawsuits brought by Betfair and fellow betting firm Ladbrokes - still has to rule on the compatibility of EU law with the Dutch Betting and Gaming Act.