MGA 2025 Annual Report: 19 New Licenses, €162,520 in Fines Issued

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has released its Annual Report and audited Financial Statements for the financial year ending December 31, 2025, detailing a year of active enforcement and regulatory refinement.

Penalties and Enforcement

During 2025, the MGA imposed 30 administrative penalties totaling €162,520 alongside 35 cease-and-desist orders and 22 formal warnings. The Authority also suspended one gaming license and revoked two others, while one appeal submitted during the year remains pending. Eight appeals from prior years were withdrawn.

CEO Charles Mizzi framed the Authority's approach by stating: “The challenge facing regulators today is not to regulate more, but to regulate better.” He added that the MGA strengthened its risk-based oversight, improved stakeholder engagement, streamlined processes, and leveraged data and technology to concentrate efforts where they have the greatest impact.

Licensing Updates

The Council approved 17 applications for new gaming licenses and rejected two after the “Minded Letter” stage, citing false, misleading, or materially incomplete information from applicants. Separately, the MGA received 38 applications for new licenses and issued 19 licenses over the year. Ten renewal applications were submitted by operators whose licenses were due to expire; eight renewals were granted. For low-risk activities, the Authority issued 2,043 non-profit tombola permits, 22 non-profit lottery permits, and 118 certificates for commercial communication games.

Due diligence efforts included 1,266 screening checks on authorized persons, qualifying interest holders, directors, key personnel, and third-party funders across both land-based and online sectors. More complex cases went to the Fit and Proper Committee, which evaluated findings related to 20 entities and 38 individuals; in seven instances, the committee determined that fit-and-proper criteria were not met.

Integrity and Investigations

On the integrity front, licensees submitted 280 suspicious betting reports between January and December 2025. The MGA distributed 192 alerts about suspicious betting to licensees after enhanced risk-based filtering and participated in 66 international investigations. It also collaborated with enforcement agencies, sports bodies, integrity units, and other regulators on 56 information requests and engaged in 85 data exchanges.

The Authority fielded 66 requests for international cooperation from other regulators and sent 12 such requests itself—mostly generic cooperation queries or background checks tied to authorization processes. It issued 58 formal replies regarding the regulatory good standing of licensed operators and worked with local authorities on 200 information requests.

Anti-Money Laundering Efforts

AML/CFT oversight involved 21 compliance examinations initiated either by the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) or by the MGA on its behalf, with an equal number concluded. The Authority issued 30 closure letters to licensees formally closing examinations or remediation processes where findings were not deemed serious or systemic. Two potential breach letters were sent to licensees where further clarification or remediation was required before confirming non-compliance.

The FIAU imposed a remediation measure and/or administrative penalty of just under €26,500. Additionally, the MGA conducted 29 interviews with prospective Money Laundering Reporting Officers to assess their knowledge of Malta’s AML/CFT framework.

Supervision and Compliance

Supervision activities included 15 full-scope compliance audits and 109 thematic reviews covering compliance, player protection, and sports betting integrity. The Authority resolved 3,718 assistance requests (including cases carried forward from 2024) and received 1,757 player funds reports. It performed 14 data extractions to help safeguard player funds.

A total of 109 URLs were reviewed to identify unauthorized links to unregulated gaming; 42 contained fraudulent references to the MGA or its licensees and were added to the Authority’s public warning list. The Commercial Communications Committee made six decisions on possible breaches of commercial communications regulations.

Land-based inspections covered 7,903 visits to gaming premises including casinos, commercial bingo halls, controlled gaming venues, National Lottery outlets, and non-profit tombola sites.

The report also offers a forward-looking assessment of emerging trends, regulatory shifts, and market dynamics expected to shape the sector in coming years.