Leo Vegas to leave Switzerland after online gambling shakeup

Gambling company Leo Vegas has announced it has withdrawn from Switzerland.

The news follows the first four online casino licences being issued to existing gambling venues in Switzerland, as an extension of their current operations.

From June 19, LeoVegas will disable all new Swiss sign-ups across sports, casino and poker in line with applicable laws, regulations and licence terms.

More: Leo Vegas review

All of LeoVegas’s games will be disabled to Swiss casino players from June 30, with new deposits being cut off from June 28, with players then having until August 31 to clear out their account, by either withdrawing or playing it out, or their funds will be sent to the Malta Gaming Authority.

All Swiss accounts at Leo Vegas will be completely closed by September 3, the day after the final deadline to send any owed money to the Malta regulator.

The withdrawal of some online gambling operators from Switzerland has been expected, with a new online gambling framework adopted from January 1, 2019.

Under the new legislation, only licensed brick and mortar casinos (there are 21 in Switzerland) can seek online licensing. So far casinos in Lucerne, Pfäffikon, Baden and Davos have been granted online gambling licenses.

Relevant news