This story was published more than 5 years ago.
This week the UK Gambling Commission announced that they've handed down massive fines to Casumo and Videoslots Casino after finding that the groups violated money laundering and responsible gaming regulations.
Casumo was given a £5.85 million fine for violations related to anti-money laundering regulations. The operator wasn't doing due diligence to identify where player funds were originating. The company also was found to not be conducting checks of players when unhealthy gambling behaviours popped up in the backend systems. Additionally, three problem gamblers were allowed to register and play.
In addition to paying the fine, Casumo must bring in external auditors to assess their anti-money laundering and responsible gaming policies. A Money Laundering Reporting Officer must also be hired.
In the case of Videoslots, the company was handed a £1 million fine for likewise failing to sufficiently track the origin of player funds. One player was able to use a fake ID to register and then used stolen credit cards to deposit more than £17,000 before the account was eventually closed. The company also failed responsible gaming checks and also failed to intervene when necessary. One gambler deposited more than £412,000 over the course of nine months, with the casino not intervening to inquire as to the risky behaviour.
The fine is a settlement between the UKGC and Videoslots, and will see the money going toward National Responsible Gambling Strategy projects. Like Casumo, the group will also have their staff attend anti-money laundering training refreshers.
Commenting on the fines UKGC CEO Neil McArthur said, "I hope today's announcement will make all online casino operators sit up and pay attention, as our investigations found that a large number of operators and their senior management were not meeting their obligations."
"It is not enough to have policies and procedures in place. Everyone in a gambling business must understand its policies and procedures and take responsibility for properly applying them."
There were also warnings issued to nine operators related to money laundering, and six other companies are under investigation. CZ Holdings of Malta gave up their gaming license when the review was launched. CZ oversees Dr Vegas Casino.
| Casino | Jurisdiction | Rating | Play |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casumo | Denmark, Malta, Sweden | ||
| Dr Vegas Casino | Malta, U.K. | ||
| Videoslots Casino | Denmark, Italy, Malta, Sweden, U.K. |
 Roaring 21 Casino | Play |
 Slots.lv | Play |
 Everygame Casino | Play |
 Casino Extreme | Play |
 Slotland | Play |
 Bovada Casino | Play |
Comments
Yeah, UKGC is doing an important job. Both casinos are very reliable for payment, but when it comes to the play protections and money laundering, there can be grey areas, anyway. Casinos must be more strict to protect players for their long lasting business too.
I was so shocked when I read this. Not that there were operators who had been fined by the UKGC, but that these two operators were the ones getting fined.
Wow thats quite hectic and a very high fine to pay as well I never would have thought that the fine could be so high