This archive report was first published on 10 July 2019.
The Kenyan government has taken a bold step to curb the growing betting culture among the youth by suspending the licenses of 27 betting firms.
According to a statement issued on July 10, 2019, by the Betting Control and Licensing Board boss Liti Wambua, the licenses of the affected companies were not renewed due to outstanding renewal requirements and ongoing due diligence to determine if they are fit and proper to hold a license.
Wambua directed all mobile money transfer service providers to withdraw their pay bill numbers used by the affected companies.
The list of affected companies includes SportPesa, Betin, Betway, Betpawa, Elitebet, PremierBet, Lucky2u, 1xBet, MozzartBet, Dafabet, World Sports Betting, Atari Gaming, Palms Bet, Betboss, Kick-Off, Millionaire Sports Bet, Cheza Cash, Betyetu, Bungabet, Cysabet, Saharabet, Easibet, Easleighbet, Sportybet, AGB lottery and gaming, Atari, and Kickoff.
Finance Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich had proposed a 10% excise duty on betting in his 2019 budget speech, citing the negative impacts of gambling on the youth.
Rotich noted that the gambling culture has adverse effects on the local youth who need to be protected from the vice.
Additionally, the 2018 finance law punishes those who have a penchant for betting and lottery by taxing them 35%, with 20% deducted from the winnings and an additional 15% remitted by the betting firms.
