Paf is lowering its mandatory loss limits for all players while calling on the Finnish government to adopt a market-wide approach to losses.

The new loss limit applies to all game categories and gaming sites operated by Paf and lowers the annual loss limit for players by almost 9 per cent to €16,000 from the current limit of €17,500.

This is accompanied by even lower mandatory loss limits for younger players, with maximum losses for players aged 20-24 reduced to €6,000 a year and remaining at €1,800 for players aged 18-19.

All players will have the option to set lower annual loss limits but the mandatory maximum limit cannot be exceeded.

“We want to be a sustainable entertainment company for our customers, for our employees and for our owners. We are now taking the next step towards more sustainable revenues,” said Christer Fahlstedt, chief executive of Paf.

“We are setting a standard for responsible gaming that is increasingly difficult for other companies to follow. We haven’t reached where we want to be yet, we have a target for the future where the limit is €8,000 a year, but we need to make the reductions at a pace we can manage.”

Paf first introduced a mandatory loss limit for all players in September 2018 at €30,000 a year and has steadily reduced it to the new rate of €16,000. Reduced limits for younger players were introduced three years ago.

Daniela Johansson, deputy CEO and chief responsibility officer at Paf, commented: “We want to continue to prioritise young customers and strengthen the responsible gaming approach we take towards them. It is a concrete thing to do, and it is the right thing to do.

“Centralised deposit limits that customers can set themselves and that apply across all gaming operators would significantly improve responsible gaming and minimise the problems that arise when customers jump between operators,” Johansson added.

As the government of Finland prepares to liberalise the country’s online gambling market by 2027, Paf is recommending a market-wide loss limit system, similar to national self-exclusion registers, so that a single annual loss limit applies across all licensed operators.