Publicwin hits out over Romanian suspension

Publicwin has taken aim at Romania’s national gambling regulator after having its licence suspended.

The Oficiul National Pentru Jocuri de Noroc (ONJN) has barred both Bet Club Sistem SRL and Sea-Bet, the owner of the online and land-based operator Publicwin.

The company secured an online licence in August of last year and also holds a 10-year fixed-odds licence. However, an online licence expired this July, according to European Gaming.

Publicwin’s suspension bars the operator from signing up any new customers or taking new wagers from current players. However, the firm is being allowed to pay out any withdrawal requests.

The Publicwin ruling seemingly only applies to certain aspects of the business, as the ONJN said in a notice that the operator can continue to run its retail shops.

Both suspensions were issued on September 18 but did not come effective until the middle of last week.

iGamingBusiness.com contacted the ONJN about both of the suspensions, but the regulator did not immediately respond.

However, Publicwin has published a message on its Romania-facing website that states its suspension will only run for 30 days and accused the ONJN of being “deeply unlawful” by taking such action against the firm and other operators.

Publicwin said: “We assure our clients and collaborators that the decision does not reflect a real situation regarding Publicwin’s activity, and that the court already notified by the operator will find, as with the sanctions imposed on other market operators, the operator complies with the legal provisions, and the action of the authority is deeply unlawful.”

Image: Santeri Viinamäki