UK commission fines brands more than $8.7 million for money laundering violations
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) recently slapped Kindred Group with a seven-figure fine for anti-money laundering (AML) and social responsibility breaches.
UKGC's breach report explains that Kindred's 32 Red Limited brand was hit with a hefty fine of £4.19 million ($5.15 million) over its website management practices. UK-based Unibet operator Platinum Gaming was also found guilty and ordered to pay £2.93 million ($3.6 million).
32Red allegedly allows for longer gaming sessions, which should indicate the possibility of potential gambling harm. According to UKGC, the company did not intervene as expected. Instead, it relied heavily on its customers' trust, while management failed to recognize and protect users' interests. In one example, a user deposited £43,000 ($52,933) but lost £36,000 ($44,316) in just one week.
The UKGC often addresses anti-money laundering and social responsibility as overarching themes leading to fines and settlements. Regulators often accuse operators of failing to adequately vet users or scrutinize their buying habits.
Inadequate supervision and incomplete agreement
The UKGC blamed 32Red's failure to combat money laundering on excessive and inaccurate profit and loss statements and poor oversight. This leads to excessive gambling in a short period of time without a proper understanding of the customer's situation.
The regulator added that 32Red had not adequately implemented protocols to combat money laundering and terrorism financing risks. The watchdog said this neglect was likely to lead to criminal activity, including the transfer of proceeds of crime.
The regulator also said Unibet's protocols for identifying duplicate accounts and supporting affected customers were insufficient. They found that the effectiveness of the brand's operating standards, processes and controls was neither confirmed nor regularly reviewed for suitability.
Regulators also identified another problem with the management of funding sources. They found that the customer's account should have been frozen under guidelines for accepting deposits, but remained open after the deadline for requesting information. This allows customers to earn points and continue playing for two weeks. He lost £8,321 ($10,243) after betting £16,280 ($20,048).
UKGC’s latest statutory mandate is now in force. This is the third enforcement action this year, following a year of fines. Since the start of 2023, regulators have imposed fines and reached settlements worth more than $15 million.
Kindred Commitment Cleanup
Kindred responded to the fine by pledging to do more to ensure compliance. It added that it had begun adding new staff to its compliance and risk teams.
Our commitment to reducing gambling harm on our platform is an important part of our journey to ambition zero and we are redoubling our efforts to ensure we continue to make this progress. ” said Henrik Tjärnström, CEO of Kindred
Despite the global gaming giant's commitment to responsible gambling, the violations occurred. In 2021, the company launched its Journey to Zero initiative, which aims to reduce harmful gambling revenue to zero.
The plan, which aims to achieve net-zero emissions by the end of this year, is an expansion of a plan the company started years ago. Kindred claims the program is working, recently reporting a 57% drop in revenue from "high-risk" players. At the same time, group sales increased by 25%.
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Source: www.casino.org
