Regulation round-up 21 June 2016
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (15 June to 21 June 2016)
Betfred coughs-up ?800,000 after AML breaches
Gambling Commission rules operator’s inadequate procedures enabled customer to use monies stolen from employer
Betfred has agreed to pay more than ?800,000 after a Gambling Commission investigation found one of the operator’s VIP customers had been allowed to bet using money stolen from his employer.
The customer, who Betfred said was in its top 5% of customers in terms of spend and profit, was sentenced in January to three years and four months in prison for stealing ?857,000, but not before wagering a large amount of that at Betfred.com between 2013 and 2015.
As part of a subsequent licence review, the Commission found Betfred had failed to adhere to a number of licence requirements including 2007 Money Laundering Regulations, customer due diligence measures, social responsibility codes, and on-going customer monitoring.
In particular, the operator was judged to have failed to request sufficient source of funds documentation from the customer, particularly at the point his frequency and size of bets increased.
Ladbrokes Aus to close Live Play in “show of good faith”
Ladbrokes Australia says it will pull its live betting product as a “show of good faith” after rivals licensed by a different regulating body were hit by a ban on click-to-call systems.
Earlier this month, the Northern Territory Racing Commission sent a letter to a number of corporate bookmakers licensed in the state, requesting they cease offering online live wagering products within 28 days.
The decision, which was influenced by the federal government, will impact operators including William Hill, Unibet, Sportsbet and bet365, all of which have products designed to negate the ban on online live betting in the country.
Seven days in regulation:
GVC receives New Jersey green light
GVC Holdings can continue to operate bwin.party in New Jersey after the state’s regulator concluded its preliminary investigation into the firm and its management team.
In a major boost to the London-listed operator, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) described GVC and its personnel as having “the requisite good character, honesty and integrity” should ever it decide to file for a transactional waiver.
In the meantime the regulator said bwin.party’s current licences would remain valid under GVC’s ownership and would not require a transactional waiver for its existing contacts.
Dutch regulator opens up online lottery market
The Dutch Gaming Authority (KSA) is to open up Netherlands’ online lottery market to non-incumbents for the first time after agreeing to process the licence application of Lottovate.
The regulator’s decision follows a landmark ruling by the Court of Amsterdam last month which said there was just no justification for limiting the amount of charity lottery licences to a certain number, which currently stands at four.
Lottovate, a brand operated by UK-headquartered Zeal Network, had previously been prevented from obtaining a licence by KSA, although the regulator said yesterday it would comply with the court’s recent ruling and not appeal the decision.
Gambling Commission appoints new executive director
Great Britain’s Gambling Commission has appointed Tim Miller as its new executive director, with oversight of corporate affairs, stakeholder engagement and the regulator’s evidence and analysis team.
Miller, who is currently head of policy and communications at the Local Government Ombudsman, will be joining the Commission at the end of August.
Miller has a history in public policy, with experience at the Centre for Public Scrutiny, the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
Finland names newly-merged monopoly giant
Finland’s newly-created state-owned monopoly giant will be branded as “Veikkaus” and begin trading at the beginning of next year.
Sports betting and lottery operator Veikkaus, casino and slots operator RAY and horseracing operator Fintoto will merge under the Veikkaus brand on 1 January 2017.
The new company will consist of around 2,000 employees and will create more than a billion euros a year for good causes in Finland.