Compliance Updates

UKGC: Entain to pay £17 million for regulatory failures

Published

2 years ago

August 18, 2022

Entain launches its first Data Academy – upskilling employees to be data champions

Reading Time: 3 minutes

A gambling business is to pay £17 million for social responsibility and anti-money laundering failures at its online and land-based businesses.

Entain Group will pay £14 million for failures at its online business LC International Limited which runs 13 websites including ladbrokes .com, coral.co.uk and foxybingo .com.

It will also pay £3 million for failures at its Ladbrokes Betting & Gaming Limited operation which runs 2,746 gambling premises across Britain.

All £17 million will be directed towards socially responsible purposes as part of a regulatory settlement.

Additional licence conditions will also be added to ensure a business board member oversees an improvement plan, and that a third-party audit to review its compliance with the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice takes place within 12 months.

Andrew Rhodes, Gambling Commission chief executive, said: “Our investigation revealed serious failures that have resulted in the largest enforcement outcome to date.

“There were completely unacceptable anti-money laundering and safer gambling failures. Operators are reminded they must never place commercial considerations over compliance.

“This is the second time this operator has fallen foul of rules in place to make gambling safer and crime free.

“They should be aware that we will be monitoring them very carefully and further serious breaches will make the removal of their licence to operate a very real possibility. We expect better and consumers deserve better.”

Social responsibility failures include:

being slow to interact with, or not interacting with, certain customers in a way which minimised their risk of experiencing harms associated with gambling – the operator conducted just one chat interaction with an online customer who spent extended periods gambling overnight during an 18-month period in which they deposited £230,845
allowing customers subject to enquiries and restrictions to open multiple accounts with the Licensee’s other brands – one online customer who was blocked with Coral because they had spent £60,000 in 12 months and failed to provide Source of Funds (SOF) was immediately able to open an account with Ladbrokes and deposit £30,000 in a single day
one shop customer was not escalated for a safer gambling review by either the shop or support office teams despite staking £29,372 and losing £11,345 in a single month
overseeing the failure of local staff or area managers to escalate potential concerns with customers sooner – one shop customer was not escalated despite being known to be a delivery driver who had lost £17,000 in a year and another was not escalated despite staking £173,285 and losing £27,753 over the same time period.

Anti-money laundering failures include:

failing to conduct an adequate risk assessment of the risks of their online business being used for money laundering and terrorist financing
allowing online customers to deposit large amounts without carrying out sufficient SOF checks – one consumer was allowed to deposit £742,000 in 14 months without appropriate SOF checks and another, who was known to live in social housing, was allowed to deposit £186,000 in six months without sufficient SOF checks
failing to conduct enhanced customer due diligence checks soon enough – one online customer was allowed to deposit £524,501 between December 2019 and October 2020 before the operator closed the account due to the customer failing to supply SOF evidence
placing excessive reliance on open-source information – one online consumer was allowed to deposit £140,700 between December 2019 and October 2020 but prior to a SOF check in August 2020, the operator based its knowledge of the customer’s source of wealth on open-source searches
allowing customers to stake large amounts of money without having been monitored or scrutinised – one betting shop customer was allowed to stake a total of £168,000 on shop terminals over eight months before the operator carried out due diligence checks.

Related Topics:Entain Entain Group Ladbrokes Betting & Gaming Limited LC International Limited regulatory failures UK Gambling Commission UKGC

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Australia

Venues Warned to Play by the Rules on ANZAC Day

Published

10 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Alan Campbell

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Liquor & Gaming NSW is urging licensed venues across the state to plan ahead and have proper measures in place to ensure safe and responsible ANZAC Day commemorations.

Pubs and clubs can face additional challenges on April 25 that come with managing larger than normal crowds and the playing of two-up.

Two-up was a popular game among World War I veterans and, while illegal as an unregulated form of gambling most of the year, is legally played every ANZAC Day, Remembrance Day and Victory in the Pacific Day in their memory.

Liquor & Gaming NSW Executive Director Regulatory Operations, Jane Lin, said inspectors would carry out checks of licensed premises in Sydney and regional areas on ANZAC Day to ensure compliance with the state’s liquor and gaming laws.

“Two-up is a great Australian tradition and a way for people to come together at pubs and clubs to enjoy the ANZAC spirit,” Lin said. “While venues do not need a permit to host two-up, they are encouraged to fully understand and observe the traditional rules of the coin-tossing game.

“Licensed venues are reminded to properly manage potential risks linked to larger crowds, increased rates of intoxication, gambling disputes, extended high volume trading and special ANZAC Day liquor promotions.”

Venues’ advertising and promotions must align with liquor promotion guidelines.

More information about ANZAC Day in New South Wales is available at https:/ /www.NSM.gov. au/about-nsw/anzac-day-nsw. Two-up rules can be found at https:/ /www.LiquorAndGaming.nsw. gov. au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/858562/fs3098-two-up-factsheet. pdf.

Compliance Updates

Boldplay Awarded UKGC Licence

Published

13 hours ago

April 24, 2024

George Miller

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Boldplay, the renowned provider of premium casino games, has been awarded a remote operating licence from the UK Gambling Commission, to sit alongside their existing licenses in Gibraltar, Malta, Romania, Argentina, and Peru.

This latest development marks a significant step for the company and further solidifies Boldplay’s position as a trusted provider within the iGaming industry. The UKGC licence will allow the company to further expand in regulated territories, a key element of their growth plan, and establish new partnerships within the vibrant UK market.

Having fulfilled the criteria to provide services to UK players Boldplay is well-positioned for success. With a diverse catalogue of over 100 titles, ranging from slots and table games to bingo, keno, and virtual scratch cards, the company is well-known for its innovative features, including their trademark Boldplay Spins.

Speaking of the UK Gambling Commission’s decision to grant the operating licence, Boldplay CEO, Valli Fragoso, said: “We are proud to receive our remote software supplier licence from the UK Gambling Commission. This milestone reflects our commitment to providing high-quality, engaging casino games to licensed operators while upholding responsible gaming standards. We can’t wait for UK players to try our games.”

Asia

Indonesian Govt to Form Task Force to Tackle Online Gambling

Published

2 days ago

April 23, 2024

Niji Narayan

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has chaired a limited meeting which discussed the efforts taken to eradicate online gambling in the country on Thursday 18 April, at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta. Minister for Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi, in his press statement after the limited meeting, said that the Government will form a task force to counter online gambling.

“It has been decided that within a week, we will formulate measures to form an integrated task force in order to eradicate online gambling,” Budi said.

Minister for Communication and Information Technology mentioned that forming a cross-ministries/institutions task force is aimed to handle online gambling more thoroughly, collaboratively and efficiently.

“Gambling is an illegal act based on regulations. So, we need to impose measures effectively to settle it,” Budi stated, adding that his ministry will focus on handling online gambling websites and contents, while the law enforcement officers will enforce the law.

“Our authority is only to take down the websites, while the Financial Services Authority (OJK) blocks their financial accounts, and then followed by law enforcement officers, police officers, and the public prosecution service officers,” he remarked.

Similarly, OJK’s Chairperson of Commissioner Board Mahendra Siregar also highlighted the importance of holistic measures in eradicating online gambling in Indonesia.

“Some online gambling activities are not conducted in Indonesia, some are cross-borders, some do not use bank accounts, some needs to be tracked and traced through bank accounts, including transfers and so on. So, the next layers must also be addressed, and that way it leaves no empty rooms,” Mahendra explained.

Mahendra said that according to the institution’s authority, from the end of 2023 to March 2024, OJK has blocked around 5000 bank accounts that indicate its relation to online gambling.

“So far, we have cooperated closely with Communications and Information Technology Ministry. So, if we receive a list of bank accounts suspected to be used or are being used in online gambling activities, we immediately block them, and it has reached up to 5000 bank accounts,” Mahendra mentioned.