This archive report was first published on 10 July 2019.
On July 10, 2019, the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) Acting Director Liti Wambua wrote to mobile money service providers Safaricom, Airtel, and Telkom Kenya, instructing them to suspend the payment platforms of 27 betting firms.
The licenses of these firms remain withdrawn, pending the outcome of ongoing due diligence to determine their fitness to hold a license. The affected companies include SportPesa, Betin, Betway, and 23 others.
According to a report from a multi-agency team, the firms made a cumulative amount of Ksh.204 billion last year but paid only Ksh.4 billion in taxes, sparking concerns over tax compliance.
The Betting Control and Licensing Board had previously suspended all betting licenses in the country and sought fresh applications by July 1, 2019, following a stakeholders meeting between Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i and representatives of the firms in April.
