Illegal gambling operators to cost the EU an estimated €23 billion in tax revenue in 2025

The thing is simple: if that €23 billion estimate is even close to reality, it is not just a tax story, it is a payments story. For PSPs, acquirers, and bank partners in high-risk verticals, it is another reminder that unlicensed gambling is still large enough to matter at policy level.

1. The reported figure is €23 billion in lost tax revenue for the EU in 2025, attributed to illegal gambling operators.
2. The source is sigma.world, which published the estimate under the headline about tax losses from illegal gambling in the EU.
3. For PSPs and acquiring teams, the operational takeaway is straightforward: wherever illegal gambling remains big enough to generate losses on this scale, regulators have a clear incentive to tighten controls around payment flows, merchant onboarding, and cross-border processing.