EXPERTS NIGERIA Nigerian lawmakers want to collect NIN customers before betting 2 months ago Samuel Post Views: 173 The House of Representatives has asked all gaming platforms in the country to commence the collection of National Identity Numbers (NIN) of customers. The House urged the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to ensure that all gaming operators in Nigeria integrate NIN in their data collection. The resolution was a sequel to a motion moved by Isiaka Ibrahim (APC, Ogun) on Thursday during the plenary session. Moving the motion, Mr Isiaka claimed that the gaming market is over $400 billion and that it is projected to be above $565 billion by the end of 2022. He argued that gaming has age restrictions, hence, NIN is critical in ensuring that those below the age limit are not allowed to participate. “Mindful that with age-restricted businesses like casinos and online gaming platforms, the critical barrier to entry for customers is age and identity verification, therefore there is an increased need for such verifications in virtual situations to secure both the customers and the operators. Imperative for regulators to place a premium on data security of gamers and gaming operators and one readily available way to achieve this is to integrate the National identity Numbers (NIN) into the data collection of both new and existing customers,” – the lawmaker said while presenting the motion. Mr Isiaka further stated that anonymous transactions make it easy for money launderers to operate undetected. “When such large amounts of money are exchanged and transacted quickly through relatively anonymous interactions, there is a significant risk that criminals will be tempted to use the situation for money laundering.” Motion referred to committee The motion was referred to the House Committee on Governmental Affairs. Interestingly, the Committee is chaired by Akin Alabi (APC, Oyo). Mr Alabi is the founder of Nairabet, a major online sports betting company in Nigeria. In 2020, when the Federal Island Revenue Service mulled VAT on punter won by games, Mr Alabi took to Twitter to slam the decision, noting that it belongs to the “bin”. “Basically, FIRS wants to tax punters. Expectedly, no punter wants to be charged even when they are not sure they will win. This belongs to the bin,” – he had tweeted. Despite Mr Alabi’s stake in the sector, his committee oversights the Nigeria Lottery Regulatory Commission, a body regulating the gaming sector. Source: premiumtimesng.com About Post Author Samuel I am a journalist specializing in gambling in Africa and around the world. I am particularly interested in stories about games and casinos. See author's posts SamuelI am a journalist specializing in gambling in Africa and around the world. I am particularly interested in stories about games and casinos. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Print Tags: Nigeria, sports betting, taxes Continue Reading Previous The Future of Sports Betting in NigeriaNext Kenyan operators escape tax hike as Finance Bill becomes law More Stories EXPERTS NIGERIA Key provisions in Nigeria’s new anti-money laundering law 17 hours ago Samuel EXPERTS WORLD NEWS TVBET will visit SBC Summit Barcelona 19 hours ago Iwo Bulski EXPERTS WORLD NEWS China restates action on overseas-bet fugitives 2 days ago Iwo Bulski EXPERTS GHANA Africa’s fintech, crypto leaders to meet at Ghana summit 3 days ago Samuel EXPERTS NIGERIA Court confirms federal body as sole Nigerian gaming regulator 3 days ago Iwo Bulski BETTING NIGERIA Waxibet Out To Change Sports Betting Narratives In Nigeria 4 days ago Samuel CASINO NIGERIA Two incredibly exciting live game in the live casino sector 5 days ago Iwo Bulski EXPERTS HOT NEWS 5 key challenges of doing business in Africa 5 days ago Samuel EXPERTS SOUTH AFRICA BMM South Africa gets licensed to provide compliance testing services in Tanzania 1 week ago Iwo Bulski EXPERTS WORLD NEWS WhatsApp allows people to sneak out of group chats 1 week ago Samuel EXPERTS SOUTH AFRICA GLI Africa expands service offering 1 week ago Samuel BETTING NIGERIA All About Cricket Betting 1 week ago Iwo Bulski Leave a Reply Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Email * Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.