MALTA Law and Practice Contributed by: Andrew J Zammit, James Bartolo and Nicholas Scerri, GVZH Advocates
9. Gaming Industry 9.1 Regulations
(a) a will or any other testamentary instru- ment; (b) a trust; or (c) a power of attorney; • any law governing the making of an affidavit or a solemn declaration, or requiring or per - mitting the use of one for any purpose; • the rules, practices or procedures of a court or tribunal however so described; • any law relating to the giving of evidence in criminal proceedings; and • any contracts governed by family law. In relation to trust services, the European Union Trusted Lists (EUTL) is a public list of trust service providers (TSPs) that are specifically accredited to offer certificate-based digital IDs for individuals, digital seals for businesses, and time stamping services for Qualified Electronic Signatures in compliance with the eIDAS. Each EU member state generally supervises trust ser - vice providers established in that state; however, once approved in one member state, the ser - vice provider can be provided in other EU coun - tries and accepted as having the same level of compliance. In Malta, trust service providers are supervised by the Malta Communications Authority. Malta has also put into place the “eIDAS Node”, which complies with the EU Interoperability Framework and allows Maltese citizens to use the digital public services of other EU member states and conversely allows European citizens access to the digital services of the Maltese gov - ernment.
The gaming industry in Malta is primarily regulat - ed by the Gaming Act (Chapter 583 of the Laws of Malta), which provides the legal framework for all gaming activities within the jurisdiction. The MGA, established under this Act, is the primary regulatory body overseeing the licensing, com - pliance and enforcement of gaming operations. The Gaming Act is supplemented by subsidiary legislation, which provides detailed requirements on licensing procedures, operational standards and enforcement mechanisms. The MGA has also issued industry-specific Directives and Guidelines, ensuring operators adhere to princi - ples of fairness, transparency and player safety. The gaming industry in Malta faces several legal challenges, including: • balancing local regulations with European Union laws, particularly regarding cross-bor - der operations and licensing equivalence; • increased scrutiny under the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations has amplified obligations related to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism. • the rise of blockchain, cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence in gaming poses novel regulatory and enforcement challenges; and • addressing problem gambling through effec - tive player protection measures while main - taining operator competitiveness. In Malta, the regulation of in-game purchases, loot boxes, and similar gambling elements falls under the scope of the Gaming Act, where such features are deemed to constitute a game of chance or a game of chance and skill combined (controlled skill game). The MGA assesses
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