The Malta Lotteries and Gaming Authority requires that a certain degree of local presence is upheld by remote gaming licensees. To this effect, a remote gaming licensee is required to appoint a physical director who is resident in, but not necessarily a citizen of, Malta. Such director is referred to as the Key Official of the operator. The Key Official is the main point of contact on the part of the remote gaming licensee with the Authority.
Chetcuti Cauchi is able to provide Key Official services to gaming operators set up under its guidance.
The Key Official may be one of the promoters of the company, such as a shareholder or an ultimate beneficial owner, provided that such person is resident in Malta. Adding to this, the Key Official may also be one of the employees of the licensee, who is also appointed as director. In such cases, our i-gaming team is able to assist and guide the Key Official in the perfomrationce of his duties as enlisted hereunder.
Alternatively, where the team behind the operation does not consist of any Maltese residents, we may assist you and are are able to recommend professionals to take up the role of Key Official within your firm, or alternatively undertake a recruitment.
From a legal and corporate perspective, we are also able to assist with respect to the appointment of the director and the registration of same as a director and Key Official with the Malta Lotteries and Gaming Authority.
The requirement of residency emerges mainly from the consequential physical presence of the Key Official in Malta which facilitates communication and liaison with the Malta Lotteries and Gaming Authority. This physical presence also enables efficiency in the resolution of issues which may arise throughout the lifetime of the remote gaming licence, particularly in cases relating to the servers of the operator which must necessarily be situated in Malta.
The Key Official performs a highly important role within the company in that, rather than being a mere contact person, he is also attributed a core function in ensuring that the operator is compliant with the relevant legislation and its licence conditions throughout the lifetime of the license. In addition to this, the Key Official is also responsible for handling an array of affairs on behalf of the licensee.
The main duties of the Key Official include the following:
-
Sealing of Servers – the Key Official must be present together with the Authority’s personnel during the sealing of the servers of the licensee. Furthermore, he is also responsible to make sure that the seals are not broken, in which case, a report must be lodged with the Authority and the servers re-sealed.
-
Incident reports – the Key Official is responsible for filing incident reports to the Authority in instances where any changes are made to either the hardware or software of the company, within a period of 24 hours.
-
Gaming Tax – the Key Official is responsible for the payment of gaming tax which must be effected on a monthly basis in arrears to the Authority.
-
Submission of monthly reports – reports evidencing the balance of players’ funds both on the control system and the bank accounts must be submitted by the Key Official on a monthly basis.
-
Licence Fee – the Key Official must ensure that payment of the licence fee is effected on an annual basis in advance throughout the lifetime of the licence.
-
Submission of accounts – these accounts include management accounts and annual accounts together with audited financial statements. It is the Key Official that submits these to the Malta Lotteries and Gaming Authority
-
Data protection – the licensee must be registered as a data processor with the Data Protection Commissioner in view of its processing of player data. The Key Official ensures that this process is undertaken.
On a more general note, the Key Official is duty-bound to ensure that certain requirements are being met by the licensee, for instance ensuring that players’ funds are adequately held by the licensee at all times. This is typically carried out through a system of internal checks and balances being performed by the Key Official on the licensee on a regular basis.
The Key Official may be one of the promoters of the company, such as a shareholder or an ultimate beneficial owner, provided that such person is resident in Malta. Adding to this, the Key Official may also be one of the employees of the licensee, who is also appointed as director.
Alternatively, where the team behind the operation does not consist of any Maltese residents, we may assist you and are are able to recommend professionals to take up the role of Key Official within your firm, or alternatively undertake a recruitment. From a legal and corporate perspective, we are also able to assist with respect to the appointment of the director and the registration of same as a director and Key Official with the Malta Lotteries and Gaming Authority.