Compliance Updates

UKGC: Licence Suspension and £3.8M Fine for Genesis Global Limited

Published

4 years ago

January 28, 2022

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Britain’s gambling industry is being warned that the Commission “will use all tools at its disposal to ensure consumer safety” following enforcement action involving suspending an online casino from operating and then fining it £3.8m.

Genesis Global Limited – which runs 14 websites including genesiscasino.com, casinoplanet.com and casinocruise.com – has also been given a warning by the Commission and told it must undergo further extensive auditing.

The operator was suspended from operating in Britain after enquiries revealed significant social responsibility and money laundering failures.

Three months later (14 October 2020) the suspension was lifted following significant compliance improvements but the Commission’s investigation continued and now concluded with a £3.8m fine, a warning and an additional licence condition demanding further auditing.

Helen Venn, Commission Executive Director, said: “All gambling businesses should pay very close attention to this case.

“The Commission will use all tools at its disposal to ensure consumer safety and that extends to stopping a business from actually operating.

“Failing to follow rules aimed at keeping gambling safe and crime-free will never be a viable business option for gambling businesses in Britain.”

Social responsibility failures included:

not carrying out any meaningful responsible gambling interactions with, or placing any effective restrictions on the account of, a customer who spent £245,000 in three months. Three days into their relationship Genesis knew the customer was an NHS nurse earning £30,000 a year
not carrying out any meaningful responsible gambling interactions or establishing affordability of a customer who lost £197,000 over six months. The same day the customer closed her account, stating she wanted to spend more time with her family, she was allowed to open another account with the business and deposit £200
not carrying out any meaningful responsible gambling interactions or establishing affordability of a customer who lost £234,000 in a six week period.

Money laundering failures included:

requested source of funds only after one customer had lost £209,000. Prior to this Genesis had estimated the customer was earning £111,000 a year because the consumer had told them they were a director and this was the average salary of directors in London. The operator failed to take into account the company was dormant and that there would be a wide range of director salaries. Genesis also failed to verify information supplied by the customer to substantiate the level of spend
a customer was allowed to deposit over £1,300,000 and lose £600,000 before carrying out sufficient source of funds checks. The customer provided Genesis with documentation including a bank statement which showed deposits into the account to the value of £23,000 and payments out to the value of £27,000 – clearly not enough to support the level of gambling
a customer was allowed to lose £107,000 over six months without carrying out sufficient source of funds checks. Genesis relied on assertion that the customer’s money came from an allowance from parents who owned factories overseas and failed to verify this information. The customer provided a number of bank statements, however, they did not evidence any source of income but did show transactions with other gambling operators.

Compliance Updates

Million Games Secures Swedish Licence Ahead of ICE Barcelona 2026

Published

18 hours ago

November 3, 2025

George Miller

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

Million Games has been officially approved by the Swedish Gaming Authority (Spelinspektionen) for a licence to provide commercial online games in Sweden. The milestone marks a major step in the company’s strategic expansion into regulated markets — perfectly timed ahead of Million Games’ appearance at ICE Barcelona 2026.

“This achievement represents more than compliance — it’s a milestone that defines our direction as a company,” said Thomas Nimstad, CEO of Million Games. “Sweden is our home market, and obtaining this licence reinforces our commitment to quality, responsibility and innovation. The timing couldn’t be better as we prepare to showcase our growing portfolio at ICE in Barcelona.”

A licence that opens doors

With the Swedish licence now secured, Million Games is ready to begin the next phase — certifying individual game titles and forming partnerships with Swedish operators and aggregators. The company’s expanding portfolio includes feature-rich video slots, table games, multiplayer formats and instant-win experiences developed in-house and through its Million Stars partner programme.

Million Games will continue aligning its products and internal processes with the highest regulatory standards, ensuring full compliance with Spelinspektionen’s technical requirements and player protection framework.

ICE Barcelona 2026 – a showcase of innovation

As one of the industry’s largest global exhibitions, ICE Barcelona 2026 offers the perfect platform for Million Games to present its vision for regulated market growth. Visitors will find the team at Stand 2C72, where upcoming game releases, partner collaborations and future roadmap highlights will be unveiled.

“Gaining the Swedish licence before ICE is the ideal timing,” Nimstad adds. “It allows us to meet potential partners face-to-face, demonstrate our compliance-ready portfolio, and strengthen Million Games’ position as a trusted, creative studio in regulated markets.”

The post Million Games Secures Swedish Licence Ahead of ICE Barcelona 2026 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Belgian gaming regulator

Belgian Regulator Supports New Law for Tougher Player Protection and Increased Oversight

Published

4 days ago

October 31, 2025

Niji Narayan

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

The Belgian gaming regulator Kansspelcommissie (KSC) has issued an endorsement of a proposed legislative bill aimed at strengthening player protection and enhancing regulatory oversight over gambling in Belgium.

The draft legislation’s key provisions include a proposed weekly deposit cap of €200 ($232.85) per gambling platform, a prohibition on gambling with credit, restrictions on the number of betting licences issued to newsagents and an extension of the national gambling self-exclusion register to include bars. The bill also proposes limits on the number of slot machines permitted in bar settings.

The bill also seeks to address the regulator’s concerns about its own operational capability and staff shortages. It proposes that the regulator must have at least 10 full-time members of staff, and it would also increase the maximum number of police officers that can be seconded to the commission be from four to eight.

While the KSC has broadly endorsed the bill’s objectives, it has recommended a phased rollout for certain measures, particularly the expansion of the exclusion system, which is expected to be fully implemented by May 2026. The commission also expressed some reservations about a total ban on credit card gambling.

The post Belgian Regulator Supports New Law for Tougher Player Protection and Increased Oversight appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

AUSTRAC

AUSTRAC Cracks Down on Cryptolink for Late Reporting

Published

4 days ago

October 31, 2025

Niji Narayan

austrac-cracks-down-on-cryptolink-for-late-reporting

Reading Time: 2 minutes

AUSTRAC has issued Cryptolink an infringement notice of $56,340 and accepted a court-enforceable undertaking that addresses the company’s AML/CTF deficiencies.

The action follows AUSTRAC’s Crypto Taskforce identifying late reporting of large cash transactions and weaknesses in the company’s money laundering and terrorism financing risk assessments.

AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said the package of infringement notices and the enforceable undertaking is designed to ensure useable intelligence does not slip through the cracks.

“The infringement notice addresses previous non-compliance around reporting and the enforceable undertaking seeks assurance that Cryptolink has improved its risk assessments and strengthened its AML/CTF controls,” Mr Thomas said.

“Crypto ATMs are one of the highest risk money laundering channels in Australia at the moment. They are being exploited by criminals to launder money and move scam proceeds. This is not conjecture. It’s what our Crypto Taskforce observed and has been backed up by the work of our law enforcement partners.”

As part of the enforceable undertaking, Cryptolink must engage third party reviewers to:

• validate whether the business has reported all required threshold transactions to AUSTRAC

• assess whether the business has implemented effective controls for large cash transactions

• review Cryptolink’s money laundering and terrorism financing risk assessment to ensure it is fit-for-purpose.

Cryptolink has fully cooperated with AUSTRAC and paid the infringement notice in full. Payment of an AUSTRAC infringement notice is not an admission of liability.

The enforcement action comes after intensive engagement with crypto ATM operators since late 2024.

Working in partnership with law enforcement, AUSTRAC’s Crypto Taskforce estimated that 85% of transactions made by the 90 most prolific crypto ATM users were the proceeds of scams and money mule activity.

“Scams are one of the biggest drivers of suspicious activity and criminals have been using crypto ATMs to move and cash out stolen funds,” said Mr Thomas.

A recently released Australian Institute of Criminology report found more than 40% of cybercrime victims are revictimised, often within months.

“With this in mind we want people to be cautious of making transactions to any wallet they don’t control and thinking twice in circumstances where someone asks you to deposit money into a crypto ATM.”

The second stage of the Crypto Taskforce is focussed on high-risk operations.

“Criminals don’t care how they hurt people, they care about making money,” said Mr Thomas.

“We want to work with the digital currency exchanges to harden the sector against exploitation but if operators don’t take this seriously, we will take action.”

The post AUSTRAC Cracks Down on Cryptolink for Late Reporting appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.