History
In 2011 Unibet was awarded one of 48 licenses for the newly re-regulated Danish market. [3]
In 2012 Unibet acquired Bet24, a Danish online bookmaker. [4]
On 3 December 2013 Unibet announced that it was moving its poker operation away from the MPN network to offer a standalone poker site. [5] In April 2014 Unibet signed a deal with Thunderkick, [6] making them one of the first brands to support Thunderkick games.
On 19 May 2014, shareholders of Unibet approved the proposed spin-off of its B2B subsidiary Kambi Group Plc. [7] The company's 95 per cent stake in the business was subsequently distributed to Unibet shareholders. The Kambi Group Plc share started trading on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm First North on 2 June 2014. [8] The share closed at SEK 34 on the first day of trading, giving the company a market valuation of SEK 1,011,200,700. [9]
Unibet purchased Bingo.com Ltd.’s www.bingo.com domain and its real money online gambling business for a total of $8 million effective 31 December 2014. Unibet paid $2 million in cash and the remaining balance was paid with the redemption of its 15,000,000 in common shares in Bingo.com at $0.40 per share. [10]
On 14 November 2016, Unibet announced a partnership with Swedish electronic identification service, BankID, as the first gambling operator to utilise the bank developed solution at its Unibet and Maria Casino brands. [11]
Unibet continued on their acquisition trail in July 2015 with the purchase of StanJames.com (online business). [12] The price paid was believed to be £19 million in cash, adjusted for any customer liabilities. The deal did not include any of the Stan James high street retail shops, which have been rebranded as Megabet. [13]
In December 2016, shareholders at Unibet agreed to change the name of the business to Kindred Group Plc. [14] The change was supposedly "due to the company's focus on developing a multi-brand strategy moving forward". [15]
The newly named Kindred Group Plc continued their acquisition strategy in February 2017, snapping up the Gibraltar-based online gaming business 32Red Plc. [16]
In April 2018, Kindred Group launched an online gambling ad blocker tool so customers who choose to exclude themselves will be safe from gambling advertisements. [17]
In August 2018, Kindred Group announced a partnership with the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, marking the company's first entrance to the United States sports betting market by entering the New Jersey sports betting market. [18] On 28 January 2019 Kindred Group formed a partnership with the Mohegan Sun Pocono casino near Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania to enter the Pennsylvania sports betting market. [19]
In October 2024, Kindred Group was purchased by La Francaise des Jeux (FDJ) per reference above.
Controversies and regulatory actions
United Kingdom
In March 2023, the UK Gambling Commission fined Kindred subsidiaries 32Red Limited and Platinum Gaming Limited a combined £7.1 million for social responsibility and anti-money laundering failings, and issued both with official warnings. [20] [21]
Norway
Norway’s gambling authority Lotteritilsynet imposed a coercive fine of NOK 1.198 million per day in September 2022 against Kindred’s Malta-licensed subsidiary Trannel International unless it ceased offering online gambling to Norwegian residents; the fine was to continue until Trannel’s estimated annual gross profit in Norway was reached or the company withdrew. [22] Following a protracted legal and regulatory dispute, Lotteritilsynet stated in September 2023 that “the company behind Unibet” would withdraw from the country. [23] The regulator had earlier paused and restarted the daily fines over 2022-2023 as Trannel adjusted its posture pending appeals. [24]
Sweden
Kindred’s Swedish subsidiary Spooniker Ltd received a SEK 100 million sanction fee in 2020 for violations of Sweden’s bonus rules; the amount was reduced on appeal - first to SEK 50 million and later to SEK 30 million by the Administrative Court of Appeal in May 2024. [25] [26] In May 2025, the Swedish Gambling Authority (Spelinspektionen) issued Spooniker a further warning and a SEK 10 million penalty for deficiencies in customer due diligence and anti-money-laundering controls identified in a follow-up review. [27]
Netherlands
On 18 December 2024, the Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit fined Optdeck Service Limited, operator of Kindred’s Unibet in the Netherlands, €400,000 for allowing players listed in the national self-exclusion register Cruks to register and gamble during late 2022 and early 2023. KSA also published the underlying sanction decision. [28] [29] [30]
Denmark
In December 2021 and February 2022, Denmark’s gambling authority Spillemyndigheden issued orders and warnings to Unibet (Denmark) Limited for breaches of customer due diligence and anti-money-laundering requirements, citing failures to obtain sufficient source-of-funds information and to investigate high-risk activity. [31] [32]
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