Finland’s police board warns of €1.2 million conditional fines for illegal gambling marketing

Finland’s National Police Board says enforcement against unauthorised gambling promotion has intensified this year, with prohibition orders and conditional fines aimed at getting illegal marketing off websites, social media and live-streaming platforms. For PSPs and payment teams, the useful detail is not the headline fine size but the enforcement logic: the authorities are trying to cut off distribution and compliance at the same time.

1. As of mid-2026, the Finnish Gambling Administration had issued four formal prohibition decisions and six conditional fines for breaches of the Lotteries Act. The cases target illegal gambling promotions spread through websites, social media and live-streaming platforms, which are specifically called out as channels used to reach Finnish consumers.
2. The conditional fines attached to the prohibition orders range from €30,000 to €200,000 for individuals and from €100,000 to €1.2 million for corporate entities. Where recipients ignored the bans, actual collected payments from individuals have been between €20,000 and €100,000.
3. Juhani Wallinvirta, head of group at the National Police Board, said the point of the conditional fine is to secure “an immediate and effective end” to illegal gambling marketing. He also said the fine is not meant to punish illegal activity, but to reinforce compliance with the prohibition decision and make sure the marketing actually stops.
4. The board says the legal definition of “marketing gambling games” is broad and covers advertising plus sales promotion activities aimed at increasing gambling demand. In practice, that gives the authority room to treat influencer activity and streaming promotions as marketing, not just casual mentions of gambling brands.
5. The board also linked the crackdown to digital channels, saying illegal marketing has surged on social media and gaming live streams, where influencers and operators can quickly direct Finnish consumers to offshore or other unauthorised gambling services. A survey from this spring found that blocking payments to unlicensed gambling sites is widely regarded as the most effective single tool against illegal gambling for Finnish residents.

For high-risk PSPs, the payment angle is clear: Finland is looking at the full chain, from promotion to consumer access to payments. When a regulator says payment blocking is the most effective tool, that usually means acquirers, processors and banks should expect to be asked how they screen gambling flows, not just whether they can settle them.