Seven Balkan countries just signed a Memorandum of Cooperation.
Serbia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia. Now operating under the Balkan Gaming Federation.
The agenda: fight illegal gambling, align best practices, create joint events, attract investment.
Here is what those seven countries are doing in parallel.
Serbia added jackpots to the domestic licensing framework to bring players back into the regulated market. That is a channelization incentive. The right instinct.
Bulgaria is under pressure to raise the minimum gambling age from 18 to 21. Two years after a major legislative overhaul.
Romania already raised the gambling age to 21. Local authorities now have powers to close retail betting locations in their jurisdiction.
Montenegro tried to restructure its gambling tax system. With no evidence base and no impact assessment. Industry rejected it. Government backed down.
Croatia is mid-rollout of a gambling reform package. First step: a national self-exclusion scheme.
North Macedonia has a Prime Minister publicly in favour of more gambling restrictions.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: discussions underway that could eliminate the sector's existing VAT exclusion.
The Balkan Gaming Federation now has seven member associations and seven simultaneous regulatory experiments running in different directions.
Trade bodies are good at representing what their members want. They are not good at making governments agree with each other.
For an operator running a multi-market Balkan strategy: you now have one body to bring your concerns to, and seven governments making uncoordinated decisions regardless.
The shared table is real. The shared agenda is aspirational.