The Ethiopian Lottery Service (ELS) has cancelled the sports betting licences of 22 companies, effectively putting the country’s sports betting industry on ice.
A statement issued by the ELS earlier this week explained that it was following a directive of the Ethiopian federal government after investigations into alleged under-reporting of revenue.
The federal investigation into allegations of corruption and malpractice among Ethiopian betting licensees found that up to Br100bn (€1.59bn) may have been underreported by wagering operators.
The ELS explained that the licences will remain suspended until state investigations – which also includes federal police, the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) and the Financial Security Service – are concluded.
Prior to the suspensions being announced, 24 different individuals were arrested on charges of under-reporting betting revenues. On the face of things, this essentially amounts to allegations of illegal tax evasion of Ethiopian betting companies.
Regulation of betting in Ethiopia has always fallen under the remit of the state lottery administrators, the Ethiopian National Lottery Administration, part of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MFED).
However, the lottery regulator has at times struggled to effectively manage the growing betting space, having been told to separate sports betting licensing from lottery licensing in 2020.
From 2020 onwards, betting firms have had to secure individual licences, and cannot carry out betting activities under lottery licences. The MFED has previously expressed concern that the NLA does not have adequate resources to monitor sports betting.