Trigger Happy

How to play Trigger Happy

A US listing can improve access to capital without making the underlying business more attractive. London has a capital-markets problem. Gambling has an investment problem. The two overlap, but they are not the same thing.

Frank Fantini, founder and publisher emeritus of Eilers-Fantini, thinks the change began before Covid. “There is a tendency to look at the world as pre-Covid and post-Covid,” he says. “But the decline in gaming began earlier than that with the slowdown in new jurisdictions and new projects.”

The US land-based casino market had begun to mature and the number of obvious new markets and projects was shrinking. Online gambling offered a new source of growth, particularly through the expansion of legal sports betting. That opportunity was quickly reflected in share prices.

What is Trigger Happy?

This isn’t the first time this policy has been mooted in the Dutch parliament. A 2025 bill proposed raising the age for “higher-risk” activities like online slots.

Van Bruggen insisted more time was needed to establish whether an age limit hike to 21 would actually have the adverse effect of pushing young people in the Netherlands towards unlicensed offerings.

Among those pushing for the increased age limit were the SGP’s Diederik van Dijk and the CDA’s Tijs van den Brink.

What is Trigger Happy?

Fabio Macorin, deputy secretary of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA), has been elected to the International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) board of trustees.

He brings extensive experience in law enforcement, the prevention of financial crimes, regulatory oversight and the development of Brazil’s newly regulated betting market.

At the SPA, Macorin plays a leading role in the implementation, supervision and enforcement of Brazil’s regulatory framework for betting.