Compliance Updates
UKGC Issues £3M Penalty to Mr Green
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has sanctioned gambling operator Mr Green with a £3m penalty, as part of the regulatory body’s ongoing investigation into the online casino sector.
The operator is the ninth gambling business to face action as part of a regulator probe that has led to more than £20m in penalty packages since 2018.
Since the enforcement activity began, six operators have surrendered their licence and can no longer transact with consumers in Britain. During the course of investigations into the nine most serious operating licence cases, the Commission examined the actions of 22 individual Personal Management Licence holders. Of these, six surrendered their licence, six received a formal warning, one received an advice to conduct, seven are still ongoing and no further action was taken against two.
As part of today’s penalty package, Mr Green will pay £3m to the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms because it failed to have effective procedures aimed at preventing harm and money laundering.
“Our investigation uncovered systemic failings in respect of both Mr Green’s social responsibility and AML controls which affected a significant number of customers across its online casinos. Consumers in Britain have the right to know that there are checks and balances in place which will help keep them safe and ensure gambling is crime-free – and we will continue to crack down on operators who fail in this area,” Richard Watson, Gambling Commission Executive Director, said.