The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) hit two UK-facing operators with a combined £657,000 ($851,000 USD) in fines for a variety of anti-money laundering (AML) and social responsibility failings. Jumpan was hit with a £500,000 ($630,000) fine while Cyprus-based Progress Play will be paying out £175,718 ($221,000 USD).
Though both operators were cooperative and worked with regulators, the message coming out of England is that regulators are tightening their grip on operators ahead of a massive revision of UK gaming codes.
Jumpan’s case was centered more on social responsibility failings, including several cases of players losing large sums of money without proper follow up. These incidents occurred between February and July of 2020.
In Progess Play’s case, the Commission found that the operator was in violation of several AML ordinances, including one that applies specifically to operators operating outside of the UK, along with a violation of an social responsibility rule.
According to the UKGC’s public statement, Progress Play officials were very cooperative and have submitted a mitigation plan to regulators.
In a public statement, Leanne Oxley, Gambling Commission Director of Enforcement and Intelligence summed up the situation saying, “We will always clamp down on operators who fail in their obligations to keep gambling safe and crime-free. We encourage other operators to consider the failings identified in these cases carefully, and consider what improvements they can make in their own businesses.”
UK-facing gambling operators can almost certainly expect to see more regulatory actions, and fines, in the future as British lawmakers are getting ready to release a major overhaul of the Gambling Act of 2005 sometime this year.