Lagos Gives MTN, Airtel, Other Telecom Firms 30 Days to Verify Betting Companies’ Licences
- Lagos State has given telecom firms and value-added service providers 30 days to verify gaming licences and submit transaction records for tax assessment
- The regulator ordered companies to stop onboarding unlicensed gaming operators and suspend existing services that fail to meet state requirements
- Gaming businesses must obtain valid licences and pay outstanding taxes and levies or face possible enforcement action
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Legit.ng journalist Victor Enengedi has over a decade's experience covering energy, MSMEs, technology, banking and the economy.
The Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LSLGA) has given telecommunications operators and value-added service (VAS) providers 30 days to verify gaming licences and submit transaction records for the assessment of unpaid taxes and levies.
In a public notice dated October 12, the regulator directed companies supporting lottery, betting and gaming services through USSD, SMS, short codes, mobile applications and carrier billing to comply with Lagos State's licensing requirements.
Source: UGC
The directive covers telecommunications operators, mobile network operators, VAS aggregators and service providers whose platforms facilitate gaming activities.
The authority clarified that licences issued by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for telecommunications and VAS operations do not permit businesses to offer or facilitate gaming services in Lagos without the required state authorisation.
Telecom firms to submit transaction records
The LSLGA directed affected companies to verify the licensing status and gaming-tax compliance of every gaming operator using their platforms.
They must also submit transaction records, carrier-billing details and revenue-sharing information covering November 22, 2024, to October 12, 2026, when the notice was issued.
According to the regulator, the records will help determine outstanding gaming taxes, statutory levies and other financial obligations, including applicable penalties and interest.
Gaming businesses with outstanding obligations must regularise their licences and settle assessed arrears within the 30-day compliance period.
The authority also instructed telecommunications and VAS companies to stop onboarding gaming operators without valid licences or recognised authorisations. Existing services linked to non-compliant operators must also be suspended.
The regulator stressed that using telecom infrastructure, payment channels, carrier-billing platforms or other technology intermediaries does not exempt gaming businesses from state licensing rules.
Supreme court judgment cited
The authority based its directive partly on a November 22, 2024, Supreme Court judgment in Attorney-General of Lagos State & Ors. v. Attorney-General of the Federation & Ors., Suit No. SC/1/2008.
The judgment affirmed that lotteries and games of chance fall within the residual legislative powers of state governments.
The LSLGA also cited Section 33(3) of the Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority Law 2021, which prohibits specified gaming activities without a valid licence or authorisation.
Under Section 101(5) of the law, directors, managers, secretaries and other principal officers may also face liability alongside their companies where an offence occurs with their consent or connivance, or results from their neglect.
Source: UGC
Enforcement to follow deadline
The regulator warned that it would issue the appropriate statutory notices and pursue available enforcement measures against businesses and other entities found to be operating without the necessary approvals or failing to meet their obligations after the 30-day deadline.
Gaming operators were also reminded to account for and remit all applicable licence fees, gaming taxes and statutory levies, including the Good Causes Levy, in line with Lagos State's gaming laws and regulations.
Dangote IPO offers ‘surer bet’ than gambling
Legit.ng earlier reported on Bismarck Rewane’s view that Dangote Refinery’s IPO could encourage Nigerians to invest in productive assets instead of spending on gambling and football betting.
He said the offering could attract up to 10 million shareholders and broaden ownership of the refinery.
Rewane described shares as a “surer bet” than gambling, with the potential to generate returns for investors and tax revenue for the government.
Source: Legit.ng
