Finland Named 18 Gambling Licence Holders. You Still Cannot Play Them Until July 2027
A licence number is not a lobby. Finland’s National Police Board published 18 company names on 29 October 2026, with 63 applications still in the pile. The licences run from 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2032. Until that July date, even a holder with a gold-plated decision cannot take Finnish players or run ads. Veikkaus keeps the online casino and betting exclusive until the end of June 2027. If a site is pitching “Finnish licence live now,” it is not reading the same gazette.
We flagged the first licence talk in October. This is the named list, and a player’s map of the eight months in between: who got the paper, what the paper does not let them do, and how the draft slot rules will make a licensed Finnish reel feel different from the offshore one you may be on today.
The 18 names on the Police Board list
The board published companies and licence numbers, not the URLs you will type in 2027. That distinction matters. A group can own several holding companies. A holding company can run several brands. Until the operator says which site sits under which number, treat the list as a corporate roll, not a bookmark list.
- Cloudberry Ent Limited — RALU/2027/L101
- KuuFlip Limited — RALU/2027/L102
- Nivei Ursi Limited — RALU/2027/L103
- RocketLily Ent Limited — RALU/2027/L104
- SixthSpin Limited — RALU/2027/L105
- YTBlue Limited — RALU/2027/L106
- Granturo Finland Ltd — RALU/2027/L107
- Hippos ATG Oy — RALU/2027/L108
- Skill On Net Ltd — RALU/2027/L109
- Sunflower Gaming Limited — RALU/2027/L110
- SuomiVeto Oy — RALU/2027/L111
- Roi Roger Limited — RALU/2027/L112
- UnionJack Limited — RALU/2027/L113
- Buccone Trading Limited — RALU/2027/L114
- Benelongs Ltd — RALU/2027/L115
- Stare Straight Ltd — RALU/2027/L116
- Pot Luck Club Ltd — RALU/2027/L117
- Amber Entertainment Finland Ltd — RALU/2027/L118
The 29 October notice said 18 granted and 63 still being processed, from 81 applications in that snapshot. Processing is running six to eight months. There is no cap on how many licences can exist and no closing date for applications. Independent trackers who scrape the board’s rolling register reported a 19th company name (Atlantic Games Malta Ltd, RALU/2027/L119) by 31 October. Treat that as the list moving, not as a second official press dump. The Police Board will keep adding names through 2027.
None of those 18 went to Veikkaus. Veikkaus does not need this competitive licence for the monopoly period. Paf is on a different, older footing for Åland. Do not mix those three piles.
Who has said “that’s us”
A few groups put a consumer name on the decision. Wildz Group said Granturo Finland was first, on 15 October. SkillOnNet confirmed L109. Hippos ATG is the joint venture between Sweden’s ATG and Suomen Hippos, the Finnish trotting body — that one is a betting story as much as a casino story. SuomiVeto is a new operator set up by BetCity.nl founders Melvin Bostelaar and Joey Singels. ComeOn’s owner, European Entertainment Group, said on 22 October it had received every licence it applied for, without naming the holding companies on the board’s list. Superbet has been tied in trade coverage to Sunflower Gaming.
That is the honest map. Mapping six holding companies to ComeOn, or three to Nordplay, or PlayOJO to SkillOnNet, is industry chatter until the operator or the board ties the brand to the number. I will not pretend a Finnish player can open PlayOJO under L109 tomorrow. They cannot open it under a Finnish licence until July 2027 in any case, and only after audits and a hook-up to the Police Board’s supervision system.
What you can actually do before 1 July 2027
If you play from Finland today, you are still in the monopoly window for licensed online casino and betting. A new RALU number does not make an offshore site legal, and it does not make Veikkaus optional. Marketing from the new licensees is also parked until go-live. Anyone emailing “pre-register for our Finnish licence” this winter is selling a queue, not a regulated product.
Practical rules for the wait:
- Bookmark the company, not a rumour URL. When a brand is named, check it against the RALU number, not against a press release headline.
- Expect identity documents and a Finnish-facing cashier in 2027. The EU AML file we covered last week still sits under that stack. A licence is not a no-document pass.
- Do not move a bankroll to a site because it “applied.” Application ≠ grant ≠ live.
- If you already play offshore, assume geo-blocks and payment friction can tighten as the market opens. That is enforcement, not a glitch.
Bonuses you take this winter are today’s terms, not 2027 Finnish terms. Britain’s 10x wagering cap does not apply here. Finland will write its own incentive rules. Read the live card on bonuses and do not assume a 2026 exclusive will still be legal copy in a Finnish-licensed lobby.
How a licensed Finnish slot will feel
The Ministry of the Interior sent draft decrees out for comment in 2026, with a 5 August deadline. They are drafts until they are signed, but they tell you the direction of the product. For electronic slot-style games the proposal is blunt: no autoplay, you start every round yourself, the round lasts at least 2.5 seconds, you cannot skip the animation, no “next win is close” teases, and a 15-minute on-screen reminder that makes you choose continue or log out. Under-25s would be capped at €10 a spin; everyone else at €20. That €20 line also quietly kills a lot of bonus-buy buttons.
Proposed RTP bands in the same package put slots and table games in a 70%–99.9% window. That is a wide window. 70% is a poor slot by any adult standard. 96% is ordinary. The licence will not guarantee the high end. It will guarantee a published band and a slower reel than the turbo offshore default.
If you came from Germany, this will not shock you. Germany already runs a stake cap and a slower slot. Finland is drafting its own version, not copying the GGL line for line. The German €5 story is a different market with a live rule. Finland’s €20/€10 figures are still on the draft paper.
A short checklist for Finnish players
- Veikkaus (and Paf, on its own footing) until 30 June 2027. That is the legal online casino/betting picture today.
- From 1 July 2027, only a holder with a live RALU, finished audits, and a hooked-up supervision feed can take you.
- Company on the Police Board list ≠ brand you Google. Wait for the operator to name the site.
- 63 applications are still in process. The 18 is a first wave, not the market.
- Draft slot rules mean slower spins, no autoplay, and a €20/€10 stake cap if they land as written. Plan for that lobby, not for the turbo one.
- Do not pre-deposit on a “coming 2027” URL. There is nothing to claim yet.
Play only with a bankroll you can lose. You need to be 18 or older. If it stops being entertainment, log out — licensed market or not. The RALU number, the brand, and the July calendar are optional. The stop is not.
Sources: National Police Board coverage of the 29 October 2026 licence list (18 holders, 63 applications in process); Poliisihallitus licence pages; Ministry of the Interior draft decrees under the Gambling Act (comment deadline 5 August 2026); Gambling Act 10/2026. Brand-to-company maps from operator press and trade reports are flagged as such. The Police Board list can grow after this article.
Published: 31. October 2026
Anything incorrect or missing?
