Compliance Updates
Seven Commissioners Appointed to the UK Gambling Commission
The Secretary of State has appointed seven Commissioners to the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).
Charles Counsell, Helen Dodds, Sheree Howard and Claudia Mortimore have been appointed for terms of five years. Lloydette Bai-Marrow, Helen Philips and David Rossington have been appointed for terms of four years.
Lloydette Bai-Marrow
Lloydette is an anti-corruption expert and economic crime lawyer. She is the Founding Partner of Parametric Global Consulting, an economic crime investigations consultancy.
Lloydette is the Chair of the Board of Spotlight on Corruption, a UK based anti-corruption charity, she sits on the Legal Panel for WhistleblowersUK and is a trustee for the Unite Foundation. She is a Member of the Conduct Committee of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales.
Lloydette is a Senior Visiting Lecturer at the International Anti-Corruption Academy in Vienna, Austria. She is a Co-Founder and Director of the Black Women in Leadership Network (BWIL), a non-profit network committed to increasing the representation of black women in leadership and decision-making positions.
Charles Counsell OBE
Charles was Chief Executive Officer of The Pensions Regulator from April 2019 to March 2023. Prior to this he was CEO of the Money Advice Service and Executive Director of Automatic Enrolment at The Pensions Regulator.
As CEO of The Pensions Regulator, Charles developed the new corporate strategy to put the pension saver at the heart of the Regulator. He delivered their first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy and Climate Change strategies – both focused on driving change in the regulator and across the Pensions Sector.
Throughout his career, his roles have focused on setting up and delivering large change programmes requiring significant stakeholder relationship engagement: initially in the private sector and latterly in senior public sector appointments.
Helen Dodds OStJ
Helen Dodds is an international lawyer, consultant and board member. She is currently a board member of the Human Tissue Authority, a director and trustee of the St John’s Eye Hospital Group, a director of LegalUK, and an Honorary Senior Fellow of the British Institute of International and Comparative Law. Prior to this, she was a board member of the London Court of International Arbitration.
She is a qualified (now non-practising) solicitor and in her executive career she was Global Head of Legal, Dispute Resolution at Standard Chartered Bank. She has a degree in Modern History from Oxford University.
Sheree Howard
Sheree has over 25 years’ experience in the UK financial services industry with knowledge of the process of regulation and a key focus on risk management, audit and controls. Sheree is currently the Executive Director of Risk and Compliance Oversight at the Financial Conduct Authority. She is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.
Sheree has held roles in banking in areas of risk and compliance including Director of Advisory (Compliance), Commercial and Private Banking for the Royal Bank of Scotland; and Chief Risk Officer at Direct Line Group.
Sheree has been a Governor, including Chair, for more than 10 years of a maintained Special Needs School and has provided pro bono advice to a number of other charities.
Claudia Mortimore
Claudia has over 25 years’ experience of criminal law and regulation. She spent the first 10 years of her career working as a barrister then, after a career break to raise three children, prosecuted drugs, tax and money-laundering offences for the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office and fraudulent trading offences for the Department for Business.
Since 2013 Claudia has worked in senior positions in the Enforcement Division of the Financial Reporting Council, the body which regulates accountants, auditors and actuaries in the public interest and which sets the UK Corporate Governance and Stewardship Codes. Claudia has led major investigations into serious and complex audit and accountancy failures.
Claudia has a particular interest in Diversity and Inclusion, she has also played a key role in promoting the importance of mental health and well-being at the Financial Reporting Council.
Helen Phillips
Dr Helen Phillips is an experienced executive and non-executive, with a career spanning the public, private and not for profit sectors. Helen’s current non-executive appointments include Chair of NHS Professionals Ltd and Chair of the Chartered Insurance Institute. Helen is concluding a nine year term as Chair of Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
In 2015 she was appointed as a lay member of the Legal Services Board (LSB), she was appointed independent Chair in 2017, and served a six year term to 31 March 2023. She served as a non-executive director of Social Work England from 2018 to 2021. Helen has also held non-executive director roles in Higher Education and the schools sector. Previously Helen was Board Director of Yorkshire Water and Chair of Loop Customer Management Ltd, a Kelda Group subsidiary. Prior to that, her career as a regulator was as founding Chief Executive of Natural England and a Director of the Environment Agency.
Helen has a BSc in Zoology and a PhD in Environmental Science from University College Dublin. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Insurers.
David Rossington CB
David is a former senior civil servant. He has worked for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), including as Finance Director and acting Director General, and other Government departments including what is now the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
Since stopping full time work, he has been a member of the Advisory Committee on National Records and Archives and currently serves as its Deputy Chair. He is Treasurer and Deputy Chair of Stoll, a charity for veterans and Treasurer of Arts at the Old Fire Station, an Oxford community arts charity.
David holds a degree in History and French from Oxford, a Masters in Public Policy from the Kennedy School, Harvard University, and an economics MSc from Birkbeck College, London. David took an accountancy qualification while a civil servant, although is no longer in practice.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has adopted a resolution on licensing conditions in the gambling sector, which allows the state agency PlayCity to begin issuing licenses to gambling organisers and confirming previously issued ones.
“As a result, this will generate almost UAH 50 million (1.028.956,00 Euro) in additional revenues to the state budget from license fees in the near future,” PlayCity reported on Telegram.
It is noted that to obtain a license, impeccable business reputation, lack of ties with the aggressor state and implementation of all necessary mechanisms for responsible gaming are required.
PlayCity clarified that such requirements apply to both those who are only applying for a license and current licensees. Current licensees have two months to submit documents to PlayCity on compliance with the requirements.
The message emphasises that if the requirements are not met, sanctions in the form of fines or termination of the license may be applied to the organisers of gambling.
“The state will direct additional budget revenues to strengthen defense capabilities, in particular, to purchase drones for the Defense Forces,” PlayCity added.
The post Ukraine’s PlayCity Begins Issuing Licenses to Gambling Operators appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Compliance Updates
Football Season Kicks Off: Arizona Department of Gaming Warns of Gambling Scams and Highlights Consumer Protection Tools
September is Responsible Gaming Education Month, and the Department is reminding fans to play it safe with tools like Check Your Bet, self-exclusion, and the 1-800-NEXT-STEP helpline.
With the football season underway, the Arizona Department of Gaming (“the Department”) is warning Arizonans about the growing risks of unlicensed online casinos and sportsbooks. September also marks Responsible Gaming Education Month, making this an important time to remind fans that if you choose to play, play it safe by choosing a regulated operator.
Regulated gaming offers important consumer protections, helping ensure fair play, data security, accountability, and a safer overall experience. The Department has seen an increase in consumer complaints about unlicensed gambling operations in recent months, a trend expected to intensify as football season kicks off and the busiest event wagering period of the year begins. Common issues include unfair or misleading terms, difficulty withdrawing winnings, and accounts being frozen without explanation, often after a withdrawal request.
“Responsible Gaming Education Month is the perfect time to remind Arizonans that while legal, regulated gaming options are available to all Arizonans ages 21+, there are also deceptive operators eager to take advantage of fans during football season,” said Jackie Johnson, Director of the Arizona Department of Gaming. “Unregulated platforms lack responsible gaming safeguards, age verification, and offer no consumer protections, which puts Arizonans at risk. That’s why the Department is promoting resources to give every Arizonan the tools they need to make informed choices and play responsibly.”
To help protect Arizonans, the Department has launched a new Responsible Gaming website and is spotlighting three key resources this month:
- Check Your Bet– If you choose to participate in gaming, opting for legal, regulated operators is the best way to protect yourself. Playing responsibly means knowing your operator is licensed and that you meet Arizona’s legal gaming age of 21+. This online resource helps Arizonans confirm they’re using a legal site, which helps protect against fraud, identity theft, and other risks.
- Self-Exclusion Program– A free, confidential program that allows people to voluntarily limit their access to Arizona’s regulated gaming. The statewide self-exclusion program was established in 2004 for casinos and expanded in 2021 to include retail sportsbooks, event wagering platforms, and fantasy sports platforms. More than 550 Arizonans enrolled in the last fiscal year, and over 11,000 have chosen this option since the program began.
- 1-800-NEXT-STEP – A confidential, 24/7 helpline for anyone seeking support right now, whether for themselves or someone they care about. The helpline connects Arizonans with caring professionals who can provide immediate assistance, low and no-cost treatment referrals, and financial counseling.
These resources, along with more tips and tools, are available at the Department’s new webpage: gaming.az.gov/ResponsibleGaming.
Top 5 Signs of an Unlicensed Gambling Site
The Department urges Arizonans to be cautious and watch for these warning signs that a site or app may be fraudulent or unlicensed:
- No Responsible Gaming Protections – Licensed operators are required to provide responsible gaming tools, including age verification to ensure no one under the age of 21 can play, deposit limits, time limits, self-exclusion options, and access to the 1-800-NEXT-STEP helpline. If you don’t see these tools, it’s a red flag.
- Too-Good-to-Be-True Offers – Promises of “guaranteed wins,” oversized bonuses, or “risk-free” bets are common scam tactics.
- Trouble Getting Paid and No Dispute Resolution – Unregulated sites often delay or deny withdrawals, with little to no process for resolving disputes.
- Unusual Payment Methods – Sites that only accept cryptocurrency, wire transfers, or gift cards instead of secure, standard payment options are a major warning sign.
- Copycat Branding or Poor Site Quality – Some fraudulent sites impersonate legitimate Arizona casinos or sportsbooks, using misspellings, broken links, or look-alike names to trick players into downloading their app or visiting their site.
“Licensed operators in Arizona are required to provide responsible gaming safeguards. When people play on unregulated sites, those protections are missing and people are more vulnerable,” said Elise Mikkelson, Director of the Division of Problem Gambling. “That’s why Arizona’s helpline exists: to ensure every Arizonan has access to the support they need. With more than 11,000 Arizonans choosing to enroll in the state’s self-exclusion program since it began, it’s clear that no one is alone in taking steps to protect themselves. And if you or someone you know is struggling, help is always available.”
How to Report Suspicious Gambling Activity, Fraud, or Identity Theft:
Arizonans who believe they may have encountered an unlicensed or suspicious gambling site are encouraged to report it directly to the Arizona Department of Gaming. Reports help the Department investigate and take action to protect consumers statewide. If you find a website, app, or business that claims to offer legal gaming in Arizona but does not appear to be licensed or authorized by the Department, follow these steps:
- Document the website URL, app, business name, and any promotional materialsassociated with the platform or operator.
- Report itto ADG at [email protected] and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office Consumer Information and Complaints Unit at (602) 542-5763 or by visiting azag.gov/consumer.
- Cease activity on the platform and monitor financial accounts for unauthorized transactions.
- If you suspect identity theft, report it to the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”): for help in English, go to IdentityTheft.gov, and for help in Spanish, go to RobodeIdentidad.gov.
The Department takes complaints about all illegal gambling seriously. Reports can be made anonymously.
The post Football Season Kicks Off: Arizona Department of Gaming Warns of Gambling Scams and Highlights Consumer Protection Tools appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
California
California Gambling Control Commission Issues New Precedential Decision on Licensing Requirements
The California Gambling Control Commission has issued a new Precedential Decision that addresses licensure requirements for funding sources of Third-Party Providers of Proposition Player Services (TPPPS).
The decision, formally titled Precedential Decision 2025-01, was adopted on August 21, 2025, and is now available on the Commission’s Precedential Decisions page
along with all prior precedential rulings.
This latest decision provides further clarity on licensing obligations and regulatory expectations for individuals and entities involved in funding TPPPS operations—a key aspect of maintaining integrity and oversight in California’s regulated gambling industry.
Stakeholders and members of the public can stay informed by subscribing to receive notifications when new Precedential Decisions are under consideration or adopted. The Precedential Decisions Subscription Signup Form, along with other subscription options for Commission meeting agendas, newsletters, and rulemaking updates, is available on the Commission’s website.
For questions or additional information, contact the Commission at (916) 263-0700 or via email at [email protected]
.
The post California Gambling Control Commission Issues New Precedential Decision on Licensing Requirements appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
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