Gamble Aware Nigeria slams fintech apps linked to gambling products

Gamble Aware Nigeria’s General Manager Gabriel Akpabio has slammed a number of operators over ”gross malpractice” and “unethical representation of responsible gaming policies through fintech brands”, in an interview with iGB this week.

Akpabio bemoaned the absence of regulatory action against bad actors that are collaborating with fintech companies to bypass regulations in the country and deliver uncensored betting ads.

As with many emerging markets gambling addiction rates are growing in the West African market, and this advertising loophole is having an impact.

“Fintechs have turned into extensions of gambling operators and no one is saying a word,” Akpabio tells iGB.

“You can now place a bet from your Opay app as it takes you to a gambling site through the app. Opay is not licensed by regulatory authorities to do so. They are bombarding some underage people with over 15 messages to gamble per minute.”

Opay Digital Services Limited is a very popular personal finance app in Nigeria, currently serving several millions of users, due to its lightning-fast mobile payment ability. Many online operators are adopting it as a payment solution, alongside Palmpay, another mainstream choice.

Currently these fintech brands have over 30 igaming companies each as their client providers. However, while they are licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and insured by the NDIC (Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation), they are not approved to provide or advertise betting in any way to their users.

Nigerian operators falling foul of responsible gambling?

“Last week, a bettor sent us a screenshot of over 11 messages received in just a minute, asking him to fund his betting account, prompting him to click on an ad to get a free bet,” says Akpabio.

“Another ad read, ‘if you deposit in your betting account daily, you stand a chance to win an iPhone.’ Stuff like that is horrible.

“In what country is that permissible? For something that could get extremely addictive, no one should be prompted to bet [through these instant payment apps],” he added.

“Bettors should gamble for entertainment, and with monies they can afford to lose. Not every day would a bettor want to lose money, but now the operators are pushing them into doing this as often as they can.”

Gabriel suggested that regulatory bodies could have directly or indirectly contributed to the problem as they have refused to respond to letters and calls to action from Gamble Aware.

“I have reached out to the LSLGA, the biggest regulator in Nigeria at least 22 times this year, sent them at least four letters in hard copy as well,” Akpabio says.

Gambling addiction threat in Nigeria

Last month, Nigerian state regulatory LSLGA launched SafePlay, a national self-exclusion portal for problem gamblers , but Akpabio insists problem gambling rates are still on the rise, including among minors who are being targeted by these fintech apps.

“Over 60 million Nigerians are gamblers, and more than 14% of that number are actually struggling with the addiction that comes with it,” he adds.  

“Today, there are a lot of minors being exposed to betting through these fintech apps. We handle cases of underage gamblers a lot and when you try to ascertain how they got introduced to this, the answer is always the same — through these apps.”

Lagos State Lottery laws for operators require gambling ads to be “ethical”, Akpabio explains, with 15-20% of the ad’s running time to be raise awareness of gambling addiction.

He says the charity is not anti-gambling but is calling for better protections for players.

“Awareness about the harmful effects of gambling needs to be created. It shouldn’t be just us, or Gamble Alert [doing that work]. It really should be championed by the regulators and these operators. If not, the worst could happen.”

 Gamble Aware Nigeria is working to prevent instant payment apps from linking users to gambling apps and sending push notifications to entice them to gamble.