Finland confirms first 12 online gambling licence approvals
The National Police Board has told iGaming Business that 12 of 79 applications for Finland's liberalised market have been approved, with none yet rejected.
Finland's National Police Board has confirmed that 12 companies have been granted licences to operate in the country's forthcoming online gambling market, in response to an information request from iGaming Business.
The regulator said that, as of 26 October, 79 licence applications had been submitted, with 12 approved and none rejected. This marks the first official confirmation from the National Police Board of approvals for the new regime, after several operators including Wildz Group and HipposATG had already announced their own licences.
Finland is dismantling its long-standing state monopoly on gambling, opening the online market to private operators from 1 July 2027. The National Police Board is running the licensing process that will determine which companies can launch when the market goes live.
The 12 companies confirmed so far are Hippos ATG Oy, Sunflower Gaming Limited, Granturo Finland Ltd (part of Wildz Group), Skill On Net Ltd, SuomiVeto Oy, Cloudberry Ent Limited, SixthSpin Limited, KuuFlip Limited, RocketLily Ent Limited, Nivei Ursi Limited, YTBlue Limited and Buccone Trading Limited.
Veikkaus, the existing state monopoly operator, has not yet appeared among the approvals despite having applied to continue competing in the online market once it opens. iGaming Business noted that Veikkaus is expected to carry an advantage once competition begins, given its brand recognition and its large existing customer database.
Under the new structure, Veikkaus will keep its monopoly over lottery products, scratch cards and land-based gaming machines, while online gambling becomes open to competing licensed operators.
Finland is among the last European markets to move away from a monopoly model, and its opening has attracted significant operator interest. According to H2 Gambling Capital data cited by iGaming Business, the market generated an estimated €1.9 billion in gross gaming revenue in 2026, with around 81% of that total coming from online channels.
iGaming Business described Finland as a mature market with a regulatory regime that has been broadly well received and a stable political consensus in favour of gambling, setting it apart from several other European jurisdictions currently tightening rules and raising taxes on the sector.
With 67 applications still pending and none rejected outright, the pace and outcome of further approvals will shape the competitive field operators face when Finland's private online market opens in mid-2027.