Poor player protection: Casino Baden rightly sanctioned

The Grand Casino Baden was sanctioned by the Swiss Gaming Commission. The renowned casino defended itself in court against the sanction totalling millions - but without success. But why exactly does Casino Baden now have to pay a fine totalling the equivalent of almost 1.9 million euros?

On GambleJoe we have reported several times on the fact that gambling authorities sometimes impose heavy fines on casinos and online casinos. The most recent was last summer when Videoslots and Betsson were fined millions. A more recent case involved Casino Baden in Switzerland. Those responsible were said to have failed to carry out sufficient checks, especially on online players. As a result, the company responsible for the operation must now pay a fine of 1.8 million Swiss francs.

Swiss Federal Administrative Court upholds sanction

After the Gaming Commission imposed the multi-million Swiss franc fine on the Grand Casino Baden, the casino took legal action. The Casino Baden failed in the first instance, then appealed again and finally ended up before the Federal Administrative Court. Here, too, the judges came to the same conclusion and confirmed the fine of just under two million euros. The Federal Administrative Court only made concessions to Casino Baden with regard to the costs of the proceedings.

Why was the sanction imposed on Grand Casino Baden?

Specifically, it concerns 17 players who lost between CHF 19,000 and CHF 480,000 each at the online casino "jackpots.ch". The online casino is operated by Grand Casino Baden. A corresponding law in Switzerland requires operators to ensure at all times that no player incurs high debts and plays with stakes that do not correspond to their income.

The Federal Administrative Court has now criticised the fact that Casino Baden should have carried out stricter checks on its players. Specifically, the operators should have demanded bank documents, tax assessments and salary statements from online players.

Those responsible at the Grand Casino Baden argued in court that they were surprised by the huge demand, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic, and were therefore overwhelmed. It was hardly possible to check every single player during this time, meaning that at least some of the players fell through the cracks.

Naturally, Casino Baden is not satisfied with the judgement and does not feel that it is justified. Nevertheless, the processes have since been further revised so that players are now subject to even closer scrutiny. The judgement is not yet legally binding.

Back in April last year, we at GambleJoe reported that Swiss casinos were much more likely than German casinos to embrace the online trend. The Grand Casino Baden was even the first land-based casino to open a licenced online casino.

Image source: https://pixabay.com/de/photos/baden-schweiz-panorama-altstadt-5156655/