BR reveals Berlin connections to illegal online casinos: How clear is the evidence?

Illegal online casinos operate from Curaçao, Costa Rica or other tax havens around the world - in any case far away from Germany, according to popular belief. According to research by Bavarian broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), however, this may not be entirely true: in fact, BR suggests that a software company from Berlin is in charge of a whole series of unlicensed platforms that focus on the German market. The journalists draw complex connections between companies in Malta, Cyprus and Curaçao and the capital. We take a closer look at the situation.

German gambling regulation is fighting illegal providers on many fronts. However, success is limited. Prohibition proceedings, fines, IP blockades or payment blocking: all of these measures quickly reach their limits, especially when it comes to platforms from overseas. The enforcement of administrative penalties proves to be very difficult, especially outside the EU; providers can circumvent network blocks relatively easily by changing URLs, among other things, and modern payment methods, especially cryptocurrencies, are almost impossible to control. In October, we reported that GGL was also successful with payment blocking in Switzerland.

This makes the connections that a team of BR journalists recently analyzed and published in an "exclusive" article entitled "Gambling without rules" in the "Investigative" section of Tagesschau.de seem all the more delicate: Who would have thought that some of the string-pullers could be located right in the German capital? According to the authors, the Berlin-based IT company SOFTSWISS, which is well known in the industry, is more deeply involved in the structures of unlicensed online casinos than it appears at first glance. The company primarily offers management solutions for gambling platforms. In the summer of 2024, we reported that SOFTSWISS provided insider insights into the use of social casinos as part of a big data analysis.

So far, nothing has been proven and the Joint Gambling Authority of the federal states (GGL) is holding back on commenting. The matter is unlikely to be closed with the BR report. The central questions we want to ask ourselves here are: What did the BR journalists find out and how incriminating are the facts really?

Complex connections and transactions worth millions: This is the puzzle BR is putting together around SOFTSWISS and its partners

The accusations made by BR against the Berlin-based company SOFTSWISS are very serious - but so far they are merely suspicions. What is clear is that the journalists' research has brought to light a dense network of companies and suspected connections that raises a number of questions.

• Focus on N1 Interactive Ltd. and Dama N.V.: According to the BR article, the analysis of imprint details on hundreds of illegal casino websites revealed two companies in particular: N1 Interactive Ltd. on Malta and Dama N.V. on Curaçao. According to research in court documents, company and domain registers, both brands are repeatedly associated with SOFTSWISS or its founder. By the way, in August 2024 we asked ourselves what life is like on Curaçao.
• Transfers in the millions: The BR journalists see complicated business structures in the connections to Malta and Curaçao, which, according to one expert quoted, are often aimed at concealing ownership or avoiding tax payments. A transfer document from Malta is cited, which is said to show a transaction of two million euros from N1 Interactive to Dama N.V. in March 2022. At that time, N1 Interactive's account balance was more than seven million euros - an indication that large sums were being moved here.
• In Wirecard's customer base: Another connection goes back to the scandal-ridden Wirecard Bank. According to BR, SOFTSWISS appears as a customer in its insolvency documents - in direct connection with a suspected predecessor company of Dama N.V. In 2018, the latter is said to have processed payments of around 61 million euros via Wirecard, making the company one of the bank's highest-turnover customers at times. Emails from the Wirecard manager at the time, Jan Marsalek, are also said to indicate that a closely cooperating network existed. Marsalek had personally requested sales reports from these companies in 2020.
• Suspicious Google adsand domain registration: Dama N.V. is said to have placed Google ads for job vacancies in the summer of 2024 - not for itself, but for SOFTSWISS. This is confirmed by the search engine giant's advertising register. According to BR, the fact that a casino domain operated by Dama was originally registered with an email address from SOFTSWISS - including the founder's first name - fits in with this. Incidentally, Google only allows advertising for legal gambling in Germany via its system - since September 2024.

Despite these links, the BR journalists suggest that many questions remain unanswered. They clearly state that the presumption of innocence applies.

Conclusion

Source of the image: https://pixabay.com/photos/knowledge-curiosity-confusion-ocean-3255140/