Rootz secures online slots licence in Germany

Issued by the Sachsen-Anhalt state administration office, the body responsible for national online casino regulation and licensing, the licence will allow Rootz to offer online slots to players in the country.

The licence will cover the Wildz.de, Wheelzgames.de and Spinz.de German-facing websites.

The operator will join the nine businesses and 12 brands already licensed by the Sachsen-Anhalt office. Earlier this month, Solar Operations, trading through its Sonnenspiele.de brand, was also added to the German whitelist.

Of the 15 brands now licensed to operate in Germany, six are connected with Gauselmann Group in some capacity, with other large businesses – Tipwin and Novomatic – additionally represented on the whitelist.

The German national online slots market was formed following the Federal Republic’s 2021 State Treaty on Gambling (GlüNeuRStv). The settlement created provisions for a nationwide online regulated market for slots and poker businesses, but the development of the market has in practice been stymied by Germany’s relatively penalising regulatory regime.

Specific rules of concern include a 5.3% stake tax, cross-operator deposit limits of €1,000 per month and €1 stake limits.