Hive of activity
A Nordic country on the cusp of a new iGaming market has mobilized over 20 online casino firms into action.
In December 2025, Finland’s parliament passed a new bill to officially end state-owned Veikkaus’ long-standing monopoly on iGaming and open the market to private operators starting July 1, 2027.
dozens of firms got their paperwork in
Such is the attraction of a country in which around “70% of its population participates in some form of wagering each year” that when the window for operators to apply for B2C iGaming licenses arrived in March, dozens of as yet unnamed firms got their paperwork in fast.
A freedom of information request submitted by a trade publication disclosed that as of March 30th, “a total of 24 operators had already submitted gambling license applications to the National Police Board” with the process set to take 3-6 months.
Reports are that additional operators have also publicly stated their intent to apply but are waiting for more clarity on Finland’s proposed responsible gambling and advertising rules.
Plenty of interest
Finnish industry insiders estimate that approximately 40-50 total licensees could be operational come market launch next summer, with each licensee reportedly “eligible to launch multiple brands.”
Nordic Legal’s Head of Office Pekka Ilmivalta told iGB that the 40-50 figure revealed the high potential of the market, and that July represents “a long-awaited change” to the status quo, initiated last March in a Finnish gambling reform law bill.
Finns are quite heavy gamblers.”
“If you look at the Finnish customer behaviour, Finns are quite heavy gamblers,” Ilmivalta stated. “They are used to playing; many on the lotto side, but still gambling and doing it online, that’s what people are used to.”
According to a H2 Gambling Capital estimate, Finland’s 2026 iGaming market could be worth €1.9bn ($2bn) in total Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR), with €1.1bn ($1.3bn) of that expected to come from gaming, 81% of it via online channels.
A Chief Compliance Officer at a Finnish gaming firm, however, pointed to Finland’s 5.6 million population as “a rather small country to add a lot of operators into the mix.”
While household brand recognition means Veikkaus is likely to hold its market leading position going forward into the new iGaming launch, one of its execs believes that might not be the case.
International appeal
“Everyone can operate, so many things are allowed that whatever size of the company, it is possible to come and make a good business,” stated Veikkaus Head of iCasino and Sportsbook, Jarkko Nordlund.
Nordlund added he was “positive that the market will be attractive and suitable for everyone to enter, [at least] the serious ones.”
The Veikkaus exec then opened the door for international iGaming firms coming to Finland, stating: “ I have huge respect for international operators because they play in so many markets, they are used to much more strict requirements.”
Finland could potentially interest brands such as Bally’s, which launched its online games portfolio in the UK last month, International Game Technology, and Entain, which recently revealed it was seeking to dominate New Zealand’s forthcoming iGaming market.
