Dafabet Closes UK-Facing Online Casino over Massive Regulatory Pressure

Online gambling operator Dafabet has recently announced that it is closing its UK online casino. The move has probably been triggered by and comes amid growing regulatory pressure within the field.

Dafabet Casino UK stopped accepting deposits on March 8, 2018 and will allow players to withdraw their funds until March 20, 2018. After that date, player balances will be returned automatically through the registered depositing method. The gambling operator said in a message on its website that its sports betting operations will not be affected by the closure of the casino business.

Dafabet operates in the UK with a license from the UK Gambling Commission. The operator also holds a license from the Isle of Man. Here it is important to note that Dafabet is the biggest and most popular brand of the AsianBGE gambling company. The gambling group hails from the Philippines and was originally licensed by the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA).

AsianBGE first gained recognition across Asia through its gaming and betting brands and later on penetrated UK’s gambling market. To secure wider exposure for its brands in Europe’s largest regulated market, the group has over the years sponsored some of UK’s largest football clubs.

Dafabet, in particular, currently sponsors Premier League’s Burnley F.C. The gambling operator signed a £2.5-million sponsorship deal with the football club for the 2017-18 football season. That most recent sponsorship agreement represented a £0.5 million increase from the previous football season.

While Dafabet has not provided information about its decision to close its casino business in the UK, that probably has to do with the already implemented and the pending changes within the country’s online gambling space.