Ksa publishes guidance on bank account verification at online casinos

The Dutch gambling authority Ksa has published guidance on the verification of bank accounts and other payment methods in online gambling. The document sets out which checks licensees must carry out so that payments can be linked unambiguously to the player, the Ksa said.

The Ksa said in April 2026 that a study of minors and legal gambling sites had found only limited shortcomings in bank account checks. In the guidance and an accompanying notice, the regulator said the same study showed that minors could gamble with a youth account and that minors' bank accounts could be linked to accounts of adult players at some legal online casinos. The study covered nine gambling providers and used data from four Dutch banks.

According to the Ksa, the problem also affects people registered in Cruks, the national exclusion register, and people under administration. Insufficient checks can also allow the use of multiple accounts, for example to commit bonus fraud or to circumvent limits, the regulator said.

Before or during the first deposit, licensees must check that the full first names and surname on the identity document match the name on the bank account. The Ksa said this also applies to a new account. Checking transaction details alone is insufficient, according to the regulator, because these usually show only initials.

The Ksa pointed to a verification mechanism that has been mandatory in payments between European banks under European rules since October 2025. It checks, among other things, full names, whether an account is personal or business, and how many account holders there are. If the details match, the account can be accepted; if they do not match, the deposit must be refused. A partial match requires additional manual checks. Other verification mechanisms are permitted, provided full first names and surname can be checked.

Deposits must also be linkable to a player when Paysafe, PayPal and credit cards are used. For Paysafe and PayPal, account holder data can be shared with the provider, which must then check it itself. With credit cards, full first names and surname cannot yet be checked, according to the Ksa, so providers must use as much available information as possible. The Ksa regards PayPal and credit cards as payment methods with an increased verification risk.

Licensees may only register natural persons as players, so the use of business accounts of legal entities or sole traders must be prevented. With a BV or VOF, the account cannot be linked unambiguously to the player. A sole trader's business account often can be, but the Ksa calls its use "absoluut onwenselijk", partly because of the risk of greater gambling harm and money laundering.

Players whose account has not been verified against all first names must be checked again, for example through a bulk check or at the player's next activity. Providers that already meet the new requirements do not need to recheck their database. The Ksa also names facial recognition and a liveness check as best practices; these checks are not yet mandatory under the guidance.