Sweden's Spelinspektionen Fines LeoVegas SEK 12 Million Over Bonus Terms Violations
The Swedish Gambling Authority has issued a SEK 12 million penalty against LeoVegas for breaches of the country's strict bonus offering rules, following a compliance audit conducted between March and July 2026. The regulator found that certain promotional campaigns extended beyond the single welcome bonus permitted under the Gambling Act.
Sweden's Spelinspektionen announced on Friday that it has imposed a SEK 12 million (€1.08 million) fine on LeoVegas AB after determining that the MGM-owned operator violated Section 14 of the Gambling Act, which restricts licensed operators to offering promotional bonuses only in connection with a customer's first deposit. The regulator's investigation identified multiple reload offers and cashback promotions extended to existing customers between January and June 2026, which authorities classified as prohibited secondary bonuses.
In its decision, Spelinspektionen noted that while LeoVegas cooperated fully with the audit and has since revised its promotional framework, the scale and duration of the breaches warranted a substantial financial penalty rather than a formal warning. Director General Camilla Rosenberg stated that the ruling should serve as a reminder to all licensees that Sweden's bonus restrictions apply uniformly across VIP programs, loyalty tiers, and targeted retention campaigns, regardless of how they are branded internally.
LeoVegas issued a statement acknowledging the decision and confirmed it would not appeal, describing the affected promotions as the result of internal misinterpretation of guidance issued in late 2024 regarding loyalty program structures. The operator said it has already implemented enhanced compliance controls, including automated pre-launch reviews of all Swedish-facing promotional content, and has retrained its CRM and marketing teams on the boundaries of the single-bonus rule.
The penalty comes amid a broader enforcement push by Spelinspektionen, which has issued more than SEK 45 million in fines across the licensed market so far in 2026. Industry observers note that the regulator has increasingly focused on promotional compliance as channelization rates for online casino have plateaued around 77%, with authorities arguing that stricter enforcement is essential to prevent the licensed market from drifting toward practices associated with unlicensed operators.