(AsiaGameHub) –   The French National Gaming Authority (ANJ) has launched a new algorithm designed to detect significantly more potentially problematic gamblers in online and live betting than those currently reported by operators.

This tool is a central component of the regulator’s strategic plan for 2024–2026, which focuses on reducing excessive gambling within France’s regulated market.

According to the French Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, around 1.17 million individuals in France displayed signs of problematic gambling behavior in 2024, including 360,000 classified as excessive gamblers.

The ANJ developed the algorithm using ongoing account-level data provided by licensed operators to build its model. The system relies on 23 indicators derived from scientific research to categorize users into four groups: Recreational, Moderate-risk, Excessive, and Manifestly Excessive.

On Wednesday, initial findings from the algorithm were published. During the second half of 2025, it identified roughly 600,000 people within the online and in-play betting population who have a high likelihood of engaging in excessive gambling.

This figure represents approximately 8.7% of the monitored online and in-play wagering population under the ANJ’s oversight. Among this group, about 300,000 individuals were classified as manifestly excessive gamblers. The ANJ instructed operators to take steps to identify and intervene with these users.

This cohort was estimated to have generated around €1.2 billion in gross gaming revenue—over 60% of France’s total online gambling GGR. The ANJ noted that this share has continued to grow since 2023.

Additionally, the ANJ intends to make the algorithm available to operators on a voluntary basis to support industry efforts in addressing problem gambling.

The authority emphasized that the algorithm does not measure gambling addiction precisely but serves as a regulatory instrument to track trends and help operators improve their intervention strategies.