Softswiss Founder: Industry responses should be peaceful, not bring further tension and conflict

Following its decision to pull out of ICE London to focus its financial resources on helping those in Ukraine alongside its sister brand BGaming, Softswiss Founder Ivan Montik has spoken exclusively to Gambling 토즈토토 Insider.

Below, he tells us all about how the Ukraine situation has affected the company. He also comments on Clarion Gaming's decision to ban Belarusian and Russian companies from upcoming industry events; many such companies have made their support for Ukraine public for the past week and beyond, while Softswiss and BGaming had already pulled out of the event before this decision.

The situation around Ukraine now affects different areas of life and business. How has Softswiss responded to this crisis?

This war has changed everyone’s lives and Softswiss is no exception. We share democratic values and stand in solidarity with Ukraine and its citizens, in the struggle for freedom against the invaders. We have many reputable partners and highly qualified employees from this beautiful country who can’t do their everyday work; right now they can only think about keeping their families safe. Currently, we are looking for real ways to support them and others who are suffering from the current situation. 

Softswiss has suspended all marketing activities to focus on providing financial support to Ukraine. We are also helping refugees who have already crossed the border to find new homes in host countries. 

One of Softswiss' offices is located in Belarus, the country which has been in a very difficult position lately and now has found itself occupied by Russian troops. Belarusians are being forced into the war, although the majority of the population is against it and are the victims of the country’s official political position. We are therefore helping our Belarusian colleagues to quickly relocate to other countries because they run the risk of being dragged into military actions, or because their political views run contrary to the state’s.

With the offices in Malta, Georgia and Poland, we are glad we can offer relocation opportunities. Finally, we are working hard on informational support, providing people in Russia and other countries who are facing propaganda with access to unbiased information from reliable media sources and making sure they have a real picture of the current events. 

How could this situation influence the online gambling market in the longer term? 

The iGaming industry, as many others, can’t stay detached from the situation in Ukraine. This country has long been an IT hub, hosting development and support offices of many international companies. Work has stopped and we don’t know when it can get back to normal. The current situation will also affect iGaming companies targeting the Russian and Ukrainian regions. These big iGaming markets will be completely ruined for years to come. 

Clarion Gaming recently announced on social media that Russian and Belarusian companies, entities and representatives will be suspended from participating in significant industry events such as ICE London. We understand you have a comment to make in response to this decision?

We are discouraged and deeply disappointed to see news like this. I’m sure the worst we can do now is to promote conflicts between nations. We should contribute to peace and not repeat the mistakes of politicians, who are forcing their countries into military conflicts and spreading hatred between people of different nationalities.

Belarus has also been fighting for independence and political freedom for many years, and the last two have been especially hard. We faced a lack of actual support from other countries who were speaking but not acting in 2020. The entire Belarusian IT industry made huge efforts to support people and democracy, and any attempts of discriminating companies and people from this country by blocking access to international events are unjustified.

It will bring nothing but further tension and conflict. The Germans know how hard it is to overcome the stigma from the times of WWII, so let’s be very careful in judging people and making enemies out of certain nations.  

IRS Slot Threshold May Grow by 300% If SLOT Act Passes

Two co-chairs of the Congressional Gaming 벳무브 Caucus, Dina Titus and Guy Reschenthaler introduced the Shifting Limits on Threshold Act (SLOT Act) in an attempt to adjust the outdated Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reporting limit for single-spin jackpots to today’s inflation.

The SLOT Act Could Trigger a 300% Threshold Growth

Nevada’s Dina Titus representing the Democrats and Pennsylvania’s Guy Reschenthaler representing the Republicans are the lawmakers who worked on the SLOT Act. If passed and signed into law by US President Joe Biden, the Act would see the IRS reporting threshold for single-spin slot wins grow by 300%, from $1,200 to $5,000. While the increase may appear substantial, it would actually bring a much-needed and long-due adjustment of the threshold in regards to the current inflation rate, according to the two US representatives. The threshold was last altered in 1977.

The 300% growth proposed by the SLOTS Act would also ease the burden on gaming operators that are required to immediately shut down a slot machine once a jackpot is hit, as well as fill in a large number of papers for patrons, including the W-2G form. This is the IRS tax document that taxpayers must use for reporting their gambling winnings as incomes on a yearly basis. Given the inflation, the number of jackpots hitting the current $1,200 threshold has grown significantly in recent years, as Titus stated. Since the gaming industry is essential for Southern Nevada’s economy as well as a number of other communities across the country where slot machines are operated legally, the new changes would trigger beneficial effects for operators.

Reschenthaler also represents a state that hosts one of the largest markets for casino gamblers in the country. He supported Titus’ statement and added that the $1,200 jackpot threshold for IRS reporting is expensive for operators. The fact that the $1,200 limit failed to keep up with inflation triggered significant growth in the number of jackpots that need to be reported. In return, this created additional compliance burdens for operators as well as tax burdens for slot winners. Reschenthaler believes the new $5,000 threshold would help eradicate the “onerous red tape”, allowing the industry to keep supporting casino jobs with good salaries while fostering growth for the economy in Pennsylvania and other US states.

The SLOT Act Has the Support of the American Gaming Industry

As expected, the American Gaming Industry offered its support for the Act, stating that this increase in the threshold would ease a number of “unnecessary” burdens for operators while properly upgrading the outdated IRS regulations on jackpots. Last December, the American Gaming Association asked the federal government to prevent illegal slot machines from being manufactured. According to the Consumer Price Index from the Labor Department Consumer, the equivalent of $1,200 in 1977 would now stand for $5,567.

In 2020, the US Congress asked the Treasury Department to find out the exact impact of a potential slot jackpot tax increase on federal government taxes. The Treasury’s report is now one year overdue. All in all, provided Biden signs the SLOT Act into law, casinos will have to fill in a smaller number of W-2G forms. In return, this may cause fewer winnings being officially reported. Players are legally asked to report and file all their wins under the “other income” tag on 1040 forms. Lots of recreational players fail to fill in this form and report their winnings, which makes the W-2G form a good solution used by the federal government to ensure it would receive its share of large slot wins

The odds of winning a slot machine jackpot range from 1-in-5,000 to 1-in-34,000,000 when the player uses the maximum coin. Last September, On Sunday, a woman from New Jersey hit the progressive jackpot on the Wheel of Fortune slot at Resorts Casino Hotel and won over $1.6 million.