Dozens of Norwegians believe they have become millionaires after receiving notifications from state-owned gambling companies, saying they have won eye-catching payments – until it turns out to be a mistake.
Norsk Tipping said on Friday, “thousands” of those who won the European-American prize were notified of the incorrect amount. The company declined to confirm the exact number of people that it affected the BBC.
Norsk Tipping CEO Tonje Sagstuen apologized and quit his day’s pretending.
The company said the error in the conversion rate from European rulers to Norwegian kroner has caused the bonus to be “too high”. Local media reported that the amount was multiplied by 100 instead of divided by 100.
Norsk tips earn German bonuses in Euros and then converts them to Norwegian Kroner.
The correct amount is updated on Saturday night. The gambling company said that it did not make incorrect spending.
“We are very disappointed, I am very disappointed, and I know people are angry with us,” Ms. Sagstuen said in a statement, adding that in view of “the breach of trust”, “criticism makes sense”.
She said she received several messages from people planning to go on vacation, renovate their homes or buy apartments.
“For them, I can only say: Sorry! But I know it’s a little comfort,” she said.
A woman told Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) in the middle of a renovation project that she received a notice that she won 1.2 million kroner ($119,000: £87,000), but received only a small portion of the payment.
The Nosk Tips Commission met with the Ministry of Culture, which manages the company’s operations, during an emergency meeting on Saturday.
After the meeting, Ms. Sagstuen resigned from her position as CEO. She has held the position since September 2023 and has been working at Norsk Tipping since 2014.
“It’s my responsibility to do things fail in several places here,” she said.
She said she was “sad” when she left but was confident in the “improvement process” that had been implemented.
Culture and Equality Minister Lubna Jaffery told NRK that “this error should not happen”, especially when Norsk Tipping has the exclusive right to provide gaming services in the country.
“We hope the board will actively improve control practices,” she said.
This is not the first time that Nosk Tips has been criticized.
The company said it has found “several serious mistakes” in recent months and has “had a lot of technical problems over the past year.”
It acknowledged that it had been “seriously criticized” by regulators and its clients, and that criticism “is justified.”
