Malta Gaming Authority formally grants national lottery licence to National Lottery plc

The IZI Group subsidiary takes over from Maltco Lotteries Limited

by Helena Grech

5 July 2022

On Tuesday, the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) formally issued the national lottery licence to IZI Group plc subsidiary National Lottery plc, a Maltese company, enabling it to take over the operation of Malta’s national lottery for the next 10 years from the previous operator, Maltco Lotteries Limited.

Following a Request for Proposals issued by the Government’s Privatisation Unit in July 2021 and pursuant to the evaluation of proposals, National Lottery plc was granted the exclusive right to operate the national lottery.

In March 2022, a concession agreement was signed to this effect between the Ministry for the Economy, European Funds and Lands and National Lottery plc. The operation of Malta’s national lottery shall be subject to the regulation and supervision of the MGA.

Whilst addressing the event, the Minister for the Economy, European Funds and Lands, Silvio Schembri said “I’m sure that the new national lottery licensee shall continue to enhance the popular games, such as the Lotto and Super 5, among others, as well as introduce other games which will further enrich the games portfolio. Together, we have ensured that the company will be committed to promoting, designing and putting into practice the principles of actively responsible gaming, while protecting the personal well-being of players. The national economic profit that translates from gambling should be given importance, but not at the expense of the player.

Carl Brincat, MGA CEO said “The MGA is confident that the concessionaire shall dedicate all resources necessary to maintain the very highest level of operational and compliance standards, and as has already been made clear, will invest in taking care of its players and doing its utmost to avoid gaming-related harm.”

“Today marks a new era for the national lottery of Malta. The licence attained from the MGA affirms the hard work that we have been undertaking and our commitment to deliver an innovative, forward looking and above all, fair and transparent, national lottery service” said Johann Schembri, CEO of National Lottery plc.

Written by

Helena Grech

Helena is an avid follower of current affairs, leading her to take an interest in economics, politics and the environment. She is quite content to spend time in nature, and is often found having noisy debates with friends.