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Compliance Updates

UKGC Imposes £6M Penalty on Gamesys for Social Responsibility and AML Failures

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A gambling business will pay a £6 million penalty after a Commission investigation revealed social responsibility and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) failings.

Gamesys Operations Limited – which operates 16 websites including ballycasino.co.uk, doublebubblebingo.com, jackpotjoy.com and megawayscasino.com – will also have to undergo a third-party audit to ensure it is effectively implementing its anti-money laundering and safer gambling policies, procedures and controls.

The failures were revealed during a Commission compliance assessment in May 2022.

Social responsibility failures included:

  • not always identifying customers at risk of experiencing harms associated with gambling by:
    • placing inappropriate reliance on checks which indicate whether a customer had a historical individual voluntary arrangement or been bankrupt or insolvent as a sign of gambling harm
    • having a system of deposit limits which, for some customers, did not identify risks of harm quickly enough – no risks were identified when one customer deposited £8255 within three days of opening an account, another lost £5968 within five weeks of opening an account and another lost £17,482 within 34 days of opening an account
  • not always interacting with customers who may be at risk of or experiencing harms associated with gambling. Examples include:
    • only interacting with one customer once they had lost almost £10,000, and that “responsible gambling interaction” involved the recommendation of new games and promotions
    • carrying out only one responsible gambling interaction with a consumer who lost £19,709 over five months
  • records of interactions, considerations and rationale for decisions were not always recorded in sufficient detail, despite this being specified in the Licensee’s responsible gambling procedures.

Anti-money laundering failures included:

  • in certain circumstances, some customers were able to evade some of the Licensee’s AML triggers/thresholds and go on to spend significant sums without AML checks being conducted – one customer deposited £14,585 in a 28 week period, another deposited £18,884 in just over six months and another deposited £34,280 in five and a half months
  • conducting inadequate customer due diligence and being over-reliant on third party information (such as internet research) or the customer’s verbal assurances for a number of customers, including one who deposited over £25,000 in three months, another who deposited over £58,000 in six months, and another who deposited over £65,000 in six months
  • having a “Reinvestment of winnings policy” which was insufficient to mitigate the risk that deposited funds could be from illegitimate sources and not just from previous winnings.

Kay Roberts, Executive Director of Operations at UKGC, said: “Our focus as a regulator is to ensure that operators are employing policies and procedures which make gambling fair, safe and crime-free. We take this responsibility extremely seriously and whenever we find failures in policies and procedures then the business can expect significant regulatory action.”

Ben Clemes

High Roller Submits Gaming License Application in Ontario

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High Roller Technologies, operator of the premium online casino brands High Roller and Fruta, announced the submission of its Internet Gaming Operator license application in Ontario, Canada, targeting the launch of its flagship brand HighRoller.com in the second half of 2025.

“The submission of our licensing application to access Ontario’s regulated online gambling market is an important milestone in our Company’s journey. Once our application is approved, we anticipate that we will have the opportunity to launch our online casino product into the market later this year,” said Ben Clemes, Chief Executive Officer at High Roller.

Ontario is one of the largest regulated online gambling markets in the world as measured by gross gaming revenue. In 2024, regulated online gambling operators within the province generated approximately $2.3B in gross gaming revenue, and growth continues to be recorded in the first half of 2025. Recently, the province of Alberta passed enabling legislation to establish a regulatory framework for online gambling. Once available, the Company also intends to pursue licensure in Alberta to expand its regulated market footprint in Canada.

“Ontario is missing an elegant brand like High Roller. We’re excited to roll out the red carpet for our new customers, and we’re looking forward to showcasing our tremendous product,” said Clemes.

The post High Roller Submits Gaming License Application in Ontario appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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Compliance Updates

UKGC Launches New Consumer Voice Framework

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The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has unveiled a new and improved Consumer Voice framework, marking a major step forward in how the regulator listens to and understands the experiences of people who gamble in Great Britain.

The new framework expands the Commission’s research capabilities by introducing four specialist research suppliers, each bringing unique expertise to the table. This shift allows the Commission to delve deeper into the views, motivations, and behaviours of gambling consumers – including those from underrepresented or harder-to-reach groups such as people gambling on specific gambling products, particular demographic groups and those experiencing negative consequences from their own or someone else’s gambling.

Under the new framework, the Consumer Voice programme will now be supported by:

Yonder Consulting – specialists in mixed methodology research

The Behavioural Insights Team – experts in experimental and behavioural research

Humankind Research – qualitative experts with a focus on hard-to-reach audiences

Savanta – providers of fast-turnaround, cost-effective research.

Each supplier has signed a two-year contract, with the potential for extension until 2029.

“This new framework gives us greater agility and reach than ever before. With these four partners, we’re better equipped to commission high-quality research quickly and use a range of approaches to respond to emerging trends or risks as they develop. The Consumer Voice programme is central to our efforts to ensure our decisions are grounded in the lived experiences of all consumers and the evolving realities of gambling,” said the Gambling Commission’s Head of Research, Laura Carter.

Consumer Voice complements the Commission’s nationally representative Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB) by offering a flexible, targeted approach to gathering insight. It allows the Commission to conduct deep dives into specific issues, test new ideas and track consumer sentiment over time.

In 2024 alone, the programme engaged with over 10,000 gambling consumers. Previous studies have tackled issues like financial risk checks, bonus incentives and gambling during the cost-of-living crisis.

Joe Wheeler, Associate Director of Yonder Consulting, said: “Over the past three years Yonder Consulting have partnered with the Gambling Commission in delivering mixed-methods research for the Consumer Voice Programme. We’ve supported on a wide range of impactful research programmes, covering elements of the consumer experience like trust in the industry, engagement with the unlicensed market, behaviours during key sporting events and the impact of marketing and bonus offers. We’re delighted to continue our ongoing partnership and to support the Commission in delivering against key policy evidence gaps.”

Eleanor Collerton, Senior Advisor of the Behaviour Insights Team (BIT), said: “We’re delighted to contribute to the Gambling Commission’s Consumer Voice programme. As a global research and innovation consultancy, BIT combines a deep understanding of human behaviour with evidence-led problem solving to improve people’s lives. We’re excited to contribute our expertise in experimental research to generate new insights, address key evidence gaps, and help ensure consumer voices shape meaningful and effective gambling policy, building on more than five years of work to reduce gambling harms in GB.”

Tom Silverman, Co-Founder of Humankind Research, said: “Humankind Research specialises in research with a positive impact, and much of our work is exploring lived experience of complex issues and under-served groups. So we are delighted to be chosen to be the Gambling Commission’s partner for ‘in-depth qualitative research’ within the Consumer Voice framework. It is a fantastic opportunity to work in close collaboration with the Commission to really understand the experiences and needs of people who are involved in or affected by gambling; using sensitive and inclusive research approaches to gain strategic insights that can help to guide policy and priorities.”

The post UKGC Launches New Consumer Voice Framework appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Compliance Updates

Michel Groothuizen Joins GREF as Board Member

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Michel Groothuizen, chairman of the Netherlands Gambling Authority, has been unanimously appointed as general board member of the board of the Gambling Regulators European Forum (GREF) for the period 2025-27. GREF is a partnership in which gambling regulators from Europe share knowledge, experiences and best practices and work together on a safe and fair gambling market.

In his new role, he will spend the next two years working to strengthen the importance of GREF and to further grow the organisation. His personal mission is to work with other regulators to establish shared standards in the area of gambling supervision.

“An example of this is the clear standard that gambling under the age of 18 is an absolute no go,” said Groothuizen.

He looks forward to a pleasant collaboration with other countries in the coming administrative period.

The post Michel Groothuizen Joins GREF as Board Member appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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