By Damian Martinez, journalist at G&M News.
What reflections can you share when you look back and recognize your extensive experience in gambling regulation and compliance?
Well, it’s almost 20 years in gambling regulation and compliance, but when you consider my years in financial services regulation and compliance, it is over 20 years. I’d never considered the length of time I’ve been involved in regulation and compliance until now. I’m very fortunate to be part of the gambling industry. I have learned so much during this time, and I’m still learning. This question has reminded me of a book I came across when I completed the “Gaming Regulators Development Program” at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), back in 2009, which spoke about a “serendipitous career in gaming”. I would respectfully borrow the use of the word “serendipitous” in this book to describe my own career in regulation and compliance, and this industry. I’ve learned much from my experiences, and from the people I have had the extremely good fortune to work with, some of whom have been the brightest minds and biggest influencers you would ever wish to cross paths with. In gambling regulation and compliance, there is never any “getting it”. It’s always a case of “getting better/improving”, therefore always listen, observe, learn, and then act thoughtfully, in an informed way, and decisively for the common good. Always be pragmatic when developing and applying policy and procedures, making use of data, information, or evidence, and be clear and concise in your communications. You can apply a version of this in your personal life as well, of course.
It’s been over a year since you were appointed as Secretary General of the Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association (GBGA). How do you evaluate the activity the organization has developed during this time?
I like this role immensely. I’m as committed to it as I was when I took over. I took on this role, very eagerly, and with great determination to do all I can, and as well as I can, using all the experience I have gained since 2006, for the good of the industry in Gibraltar and Gibraltar at large. A year on and I’m still as eager and determined. Some of the initiatives we have embarked on have exceeded my expectations and have me rather enthused. We shall continue further developing the GBGA in 2024 and beyond, using working groups on a range of topics and themes, for example, anti-money laundering, safer gambling, diversity, equality, and inclusion.
Which are the main issues you are dealing with right now in Gibraltar regarding gambling regulation?
We’re on the cusp of a new and modernized gambling law in Gibraltar, and the new and/or updated codes of practice and licensing regime that would follow. This will keep us all very busy. We’re also pending the outcome of treaty negotiations with Spain and the European Union (EU), following the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU, and the impact this would have on the industry in Gibraltar, as well as gambling licensing and regulation in our territory.
A few days ago, the Minister for Justice, Trade and Industry of Gibraltar, Nigel Feetham, delivered the opening address to the Ethical Gambling Forum 2024, underscoring the importance of ethical practices within the gaming industry. How could the responsible gaming policies of the region be improved?
We’re developing our safer gambling working group to identify the key themes and topics in safer gambling that we can and should work on as a collective. We also want to include all relevant third parties in this work as identified and required. For example, I can mention the Centre of Excellence in Responsible Gambling at the University of Gibraltar, other trade associations such as the Betting and Gaming Council, and the European Gaming and Betting Association, Government of Gibraltar (including the Gambling Commissioner), among others. It must be a collective effort to help and protect players from gambling harms, and Gibraltar and the GBGA have a proven track record in bringing parties together to work towards a common aim. We believe in the use of data to inform research and the work that the safer gambling group would carry out, and we’re looking further into how we can develop our capabilities on this front.