Finnish joint venture between ATG and Suomen Hippo is the second operator to be approved to enter Finland’s iGaming market next July
Hippos ATG has been granted a licence to enter Finland’s re-regulated iGaming market next year.
The approval will enable Hippos ATG, the joint venture between ATG and Finnish horse racing association Suomen Hippos, to offer its services in Finland when the new licensing regime comes into effect on 1 July 2027.
The licence covers horse race betting, sports betting, and online casino games.
“We have always been confident that we meet the requirements for obtaining a licence,” said Hippos ATG chief executive Mikael Bäcke. “A positive outcome is the most essential prerequisite for establishing a presence in the market, so this is a big day for us.
“We have invested a tremendous amount of effort into building an entirely new company in Finland, with operational processes designed from the ground up to comply with the new Finnish legislation. Following today’s welcome news, we can focus even more on our products and on finalizing our operations.”
Hippos ATG will combine the experience that ATG has gained in Sweden and Denmark over several decades with the expertise of Suomen Hippos in harness racing and equestrian sports.
“ATG is the largest gambling operator in the Nordic region and the market leader in horse betting in Sweden and Denmark,” continued Bäcke. “We want to participate in developing the gambling market in Finland, thereby strengthening the foundations for Finnish sports and the equestrian sector.”
Under Hippos ATG Oy’s profit-distribution model, 60 per cent of its profit will be returned to Finnish horse sports and horse breeding.
Last week, Wildz Group became the first iGaming operator to be approved to launch in Finland’s re-regulated market next year.