Hippos ATG secures licence for Finland's new betting market
The joint venture between Sweden's ATG and Finnish body Suomen Hippos has won one of the licences needed to operate when Finland ends its betting monopoly in 2027.
Hippos ATG, the joint venture between Swedish horseracing operator ATG and the Finnish Trotting and Breeding Association, Suomen Hippos, has been awarded a gambling licence covering horse race betting, sports betting and online casino, the company said in a statement reported by EGR.
The approval clears the way for Hippos ATG to trade once Finland opens its betting market to multiple licensed operators on 1 July 2027, ending the long-standing monopoly held by state operator Veikkaus.
That liberalisation was originally due to begin on 1 January 2026 but was pushed back by eighteen months following a decision taken in December 2025.
The Finnish National Police Board, which oversees licensing, said in September that it had logged 75 applications since the process opened in March.
Suomen Hippos chief executive Mikael Bäcke said the venture had been "confident" of winning a licence and called the outcome a "significant moment" for the business.
"We have worked hard to build a completely new company in Finland and its operating models from the ground up to comply with the requirements of the new Finnish legislation," Bäcke said.
He added that the firm could now turn its attention to "finalising the operational entity" and to the products it plans to bring to market.
ATG and Suomen Hippos hold equal 50% stakes in the venture, though profits are split 60/40 in Suomen Hippos' favour.
The joint venture was first unveiled in April 2025. Bäcke joined as chief executive that June, before Joonas Saha was named chief commercial officer and Antti Koivula chief compliance officer in August. Jussi Nurmi was brought in as chief operating officer in November.
Hippos ATG will compete against a field of operators preparing for Finland's reregulated market, including FDJ United, LeoVegas Group and Betsson. BetCity founders Joey Singels and Melvin Bostelaar also launched a new brand, SuomiVeto, in January 2026, with ambitions to be trading when the market opens.
Licensed operators in Finland will face a 22% tax rate alongside tight marketing rules that bar the use of affiliates and social media influencers and prohibit welcome bonuses.
Paf chief executive Christer Fahlstedt told EGR in August that the scale of these restrictions carried a risk of making the new regime commercially "unsustainable" for some entrants.
Veikkaus, which still holds the monopoly ahead of the 2027 switch, reported revenue of €471.3m for the first half of 2026, lifted by strong growth in its online betting segment.