The United Kingdom Gambling Commission is once again showing its stern face towards online gambling operators. They have already made the life of sports betting operators extremely difficult through a sharp increase of taxes and a decrease of the maximum bet on fixed odds betting terminals. And they now turn their sight towards casinos. Needless to say, the previous two decisions are going to have a significant impact on the industry and especially on operators’ revenues.
The UKGC has started to issue huge fines to casinos that don’t operate under the “effective standards” that have been set from the authority. As a result, three UK online casino operators (Daub Alderney, Casumo, and Video Slots) were issued a fine in the amount of a total £14 million. As for the the 3 casino’s violations, they didn’t prevent problem gamblers from accessing their services. That was enough for the UKGC to whip them with an exterminating fine!
In addition, the CEO of the UKGC, Mr. Neil McArthur, commented on the fines: “It is not enough to have policies and procedures in place. Everyone in gambling must understand its policies and procedures and take responsibility for properly applying them. Moreover, we expect operators to know their customers. Also, we expect to ask the right questions to make sure they meet their anti-money laundering and social responsibility obligations.”.