Sports betting firm Betika has been suspended in Ethiopia amid revelations that gambling firms hid over Sh83.5 billion revenue, triggering arrests and a crackdown that echoes a clampdown witnessed in Kenya six years ago.
Ethiopian authorities suspended the licenses of 22 betting companies, including Betika, in the wake of a multi-agency surveillance operation involving the National Intelligence and Security Service, the Financial Security Service, and the Ethiopian Federal Police.
Ethiopia stated that the freeze will remain in place until it completes its criminal investigations, with regulators indicating that the removal of operators that fail to meet reporting and compliance obligations is intended to strengthen the legal betting market.
According to the Ethiopian Lottery Service (ELS), owners of the suspended organisations are suspected to have hidden more than Br100 billion (about Sh83.5 billion) which should have been government revenue.
The move mirrors Kenya’s own betting crackdown six years ago, when authorities abruptly suspended licences and payment services, catching operators and investors off guard amid the industry’s rapid growth and popularity.
Betika expressed optimism of making a comeback.
“Dear customers, we would like to inform you that your favourite betting partner, Betika, has been suspended for an indefinite period,” reads a text display on the firm’s Ethiopian official website.
“We’ll soon be back with improved odds, faster service, and a more efficient operation! Thank you for your patience!”
Betika Kenya could not immediately be reached for comment. The firm says it operates in African countries of Kenya, DRC, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
Ethiopia has framed the crackdown as necessary to protect public revenue and restore trust, pointing to a tougher enforcement posture in a sector that expanded faster than oversight capacity.
Kenya went through this path in 2019 after then-Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i announced that the state had withdrawn the betting licences of 27 firms.
SportPesa, which became a roaring success after it launched in Kenya in 2014, closed shop and the brand made a return under a separate firm, Milestone.
The number two operator, Betin Kenya, also ceased operations in the wake of the clampdown, which saw two of its directors, Leandro Giovando and Domenico Giovando, deported.
Betika, then the third biggest betting firm, retained its license throughout those turbulent months, making it rise to be Kenya’s biggest betting company after the exit of SportPesa and Betin.
It remains unclear who is the top player today with the return of SportPesa under Milestone.
Ethiopia’s crackdown, which led to arrest of executives in the betting firms, comes as the country eases restrictions to investors, notably foreigners.
Ethiopia's economy is still heavily controlled by the state, a legacy of being a command economy for decades, but a recent shift towards more private sector involvement was notable for being more ambitious than previous attempts at opening up.
There are currently no investment banks in Ethiopia, and commercial banks are only able to offer limited funding to businesses due to prudential requirements.
But it plans issue licences to let foreign investment banks operate in the country, a key step ahead of its planned launch later this year of a securities exchange, the regulator's director told Reuters.
The liberalisation initiative has attracted foreign investors like Safaricom but faced recent setbacks due to what some analysts say is an unpredictable regulatory environment, security concerns and macroeconomic instability.
The move is part of a drive by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed since 2018 to open up the country of 120 million to greater private investment. Like in Kenya, Ethiopia’s sports betting market has grown rapidly in recent years, driven by widespread mobile internet access and a young population comfortable with digital payments.
Regulators have acknowledged that enforcement has struggled to keep pace with that expansion, allowing some unlicensed or non-compliant operators to operate with limited scrutiny.
The Ethiopian Lottery Service (ELS) said it had withdrawn the licences after investigators uncovered suspected under-reporting of gambling revenue.
“The Ethiopian Lottery Service announces that the sports betting licences of 22 sports betting organisations have been suspended effective November 25, pursuant to Article 14/2/C/ of Proclamation No. 535/1999 and Sports Betting Lottery Licensing Directive No. 172/2013,” the ELS said in a statement.
According to the regulator, the investigation involves multiple state agencies.
“It is known that the owners and accomplices of sports betting organisations suspected of hiding more than 100bn birr which should have been government revenue, have been apprehended through the collaboration of the National Intelligence and Security Service, the Financial Security Service, the Ethiopian Federal Police, security bodies of the Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa city administrations and the public,” the ELS said.
