Report
LOTTERY: LOTARIA KOMBETARE
LOTTERY/BINGO TURNOVER: €5.6M
BOOKMAKERS: 3,000 LOCATIONS
BETTING TURNOVER: €30M APPROX
ELECTRONIC CASINOS: 190 APPROX
NO. OF SLOTS: 2,200
ELECTRONIC CASINO TURNOVER: €92M
CASINOS: 1
CASINO TURNOVER: €13.2M
TOTAL TURNOVER: €140M
Earlier this year Marriot International removed its Sheraton Hotel brand from Albania. Tis was the first five star hotel to open in Tirana back in 2003. Reports say financial difficulties and the indifference of the government towards the hotel’s decision to close may have been the cause. It was opened by MAK Albania, a company active in the country since 1992. Te building has since been sold.
indifference of the government towards the hotel’s decision to close may have been the cause.
It was opened by MAK Albania, a company active in the country since 1992. Te building has since been sold.
Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama is keen to back developments in the country. He was elected in September 2013 when his Socialist Party won a landslide victory bringing an end to eight years of Conservative rule. He was re- elected in 2017 and his main campaign pledges were to revive the economy, combat crime and speed up Albania’s EU integration.
But the country still remains plagued with tales of corruption whilst there were recent protests demanding the resignation of Rama and accusations that the government has ties with organised crime and trafficking groups.
A report recently unveiled that despite the illusion of many media companies, in fact four major owners control about half of the audience share of the country’s TV market. Print media has been crippled with falling revenues and
circulation numbers and one owner has 30 per cent of the audience via two daily newspapers. Tere are six national television stations, 22 newspapers (19 dailies and three weeklies).
Unemployment rate is now 13.4 per cent. Economic growth is around 3.6 per cent and GDP in 2017 was $13.18bn and $4,582 per capita. Minimum monthly wage is around LAV22,000 whilst an average monthly wage is around LAV54,000.
Te black economy in Albania is said to be worth about a third of its GDP. Tax evasion amounts to nearly eight per cent of GDP or €810m.
Te country recently signed up accounting firm Ernst & Young to help fight the rampant tax evasion problems and economic crimes. Although the government has seized a huge amount of wealth from criminal activities since Rama took office there is still much more to do.
THE GAMBLING SECTOR Despite the fact around 70 per cent of the
Albanian population is Muslim gambling is legal. After 1991 when Albania began to remove
Communist restrictions, sports betting and lottery games became legal. Casino gambling has been permitted since the early 2000s and the first casino opened in 2005 in Tirana.
Tere are currently 10 licensed operators permitted to operate electronic casinos, three sports betting companies and one casino.
Te new law 155/2015 led by Finance Minister Shkelqim Cani brought in several changes and some restrictions in advertising, taxes and number of gambling halls and a distance requirement for slot halls between gambling halls and educational locations.
Previously Albania operated under a law (no. 10 033) introduced back in 2008. Te new law (no. 155/2015) ‘On Gambling in the Republic of Albania’ replaced the old law and permits sports betting, racing betting, casinos (located in five star hotels), electronic casinos at distance, resort casinos, national lottery and televised bingo.
Te new law also introduced some new gambling categories such as Casinos in five star hotels, Resort Casinos and electronic casinos at distance. Te age limit for gambling premises is
NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / MARKET DATA P65
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