U.K. gambling regulators have cracked down on industry giant bet365 in response to anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures.
The U.K.’s Gambling Commission announced in a release on Thursday that Hillside ENC’s UK Gaming and UK Sports arms, which hold licenses for bet365’s casino and sports betting efforts in the U.K., will pay a combined £582,120, with the funds directed towards what the gambling commission describes as socially responsible causes.
The gambling commission says the failings were discovered during a March 2022 assessment.
“The policy and procedural failings may not have been as severe as those at other gambling businesses in recent years but they were failings nonetheless,” Kay Roberts, executive director of operations for the gambling commission said in a statement. “We expect high standards from operators in terms of keeping gambling safe, fair and crime-free, and will always take action to correct any failings.
“This operator is very aware that a repeat of these failings will result in escalating regulatory action.”
Among the failures reported in the gambling commission’s release, bet365 reportedly failed to undertake financial sanctions checks on new customers and failed to undertake independent verification checks, both in breach of licensing conditions related to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing.
The betting giant also reportedly had specific failings related to enhanced customer due diligence and know-your-customer (KYC) triggers that were not capable of managing ML risk, according to a Next.io report.
Continued crackdown
The regulatory settlement between the U.K. Gambling Commission and the at-fault parties marks a first for the UKGC, though it’s nothing new for the regulatory body to slap culprits with hefty fines. Back in January, another major player in the U.K. gaming sphere – Bally-owned Gamesys – was hammered with a £6-million fine for their regulatory failures.
The effort also marks a continued crackdown in the U.K. around online gambling in recent weeks. Growing voices in the U.K. market have called for a stop to “sneaky” gambling ads across social media, while back in February, the U.K. introduced a cap on online slot stakes for those under 25 at £2.
