L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has officially been unveiled as France’s new gambling regulator, taking over from ARJEL whilst also inheriting significantly expanded regulatory scope and enhanced powers to watch over the market.
Having only been established last year, ANJ was created under amended gambling legislation with the aim of enabling the regulator to supervise all segments of the French gambling market, and has now assumed responsibility for online gambling from ARJEL.
ANJ chairwoman Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, stated: “The ANJ is not an enlarged ARJEL, it is a new project that requires rethinking regulation. It has to adapt its intervention to monopolies (FDJ and PMU) and to players gambling mostly anonymously in points of sale.
“I would like to set up a regulation that combines support and control in order to better serve and protect players.”
Launching as the sole regulator earlier this week, ANJ reiterated its stance which includes the prevention of excessive or pathological gambling and protecting minors; ensuring the integrity, reliability and transparency of gaming; and preventing fraudulent and criminal activities.
Moreover, the group will also work towards the prevention of money laundering and financing of terrorism, and will work towards ensuring there is balanced, fair development of various types of games, in order to avoid any economic destabilisation.
As it stand, the ANJ is currently finalising two reference frameworks, one of which focusses on the prevention of gambling addiction and the protection of minors, with the latter tackling the fight against fraud, money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
Regarding its enhanced powers, the regulator will now have the ability to withdraw advertising communications encouraging excessive incentive to play. In addition to this it also has the power to carry out on-the-spot checks, and approve both operators’ game types and promotional strategies.
ANJ is also now set to be responsible for overseeing horse racing betting at the country’s 228 racetracks and will provide overwatch for all lottery and retail operations as well as casino operations.
Additionally, France’s self-exclusion programme will be transferred to the regulator from the Ministry of Home Affairs later in the year, with the ANJ now expected to propose new registration processes and improve player protections tools.
