Continuous growth of I-Gaming industry in Malta

The remote gaming industry has continued to grow in Malta in 2015. During the first six months of the past year 2015 a number of 43 new remote gaming licences were issued by the Malta Gaming Authority; during the same time the regulator terminated 22 licences and suspended a total of 8 licences.

Distribution of Licences by Class Type

The picture by licence class shows a leading number of 252 licences issued for class 1 operators (Casino), followed by 105 licences for class 2 (Sports), altogether 63 licences for class 3 (Poker) operators and 54 for class 4, representing software platforms.

By the end of June 2015 an exact number 474 licences were held by a total number 277 remote gaming operators registered by the Malta Gaming Authority. In May 2016 MGA will publish its full year industry performance report.

Age distribution of the Remote Gaming Players

Amongst all customers of the gaming companies licensed in Malta, the by far largest group (40%) are clients between 35 - 54 years old, while 27% are aged between 25 – 34 years, both groups together (25 – 54 years) thus accounting for more than two thirds of the players. Whereas around 16% of all customers are aged between 18 – 24 (younger clients), clients between 55 – 64 (older clients) of age constitute 15% of the entire customer base.

Gross Gaming Revenue Distribution

According to the MGA report January to June 2015 almost 58% of the total gross gaming revenue (land-based and remote gaming sectors) was generated by casino games, followed by sports betting at 34%. Pool betting/betting exchange generated 4% of the total revenues while poker accounted for 1%. The remaining 3% was generated by other games including pure skill games, bingo and lotteries.