William Hill disappointed by Mr Green’s costly Swedish AML gaps

William Hill has issued a response to the AML failings of Mr Green, its flagship European online gambling subsidiary, which was fined SEK 30 million (€3.1m) by Spelinspektionen – Sweden’s gambling inspectorate. 

Yesterday, Spelinspektionen published its casework on Mr Green, outlining multiple AML compliance and duty of customer care failures identified between 1 January 2019 to 1 June 2020.

The findings focused on 15 customers who were reported to have used Mr Green to engage in money laundering or illicit activities.  

The investigation concluded that Mr Green had failed to maintain its AML duties with regards to verifying IDs, registering source-of-fund checks on large deposits and undertaking minimal interventions on players displaying problematic behaviours.

Mr Green noted its AML shortcomings, stating that during 2019 its business had been transitioning to a new compliance system aligned with Spelinspektionen requirements, brought in by changes to Sweden’s online gambling laws. 

“Player protection has always been a priority for Mr Green. We are disappointed by the findings as we always seek to operate in full compliance with regulations,” read a statement made by Patrick Jonker, MD William Hill International and Mr Green. 

“The gaps noted by the Swedish authority were in relation to Mr Green’s procedures required under the duty of care, and the handling times relating to AML.

“Since this was identified, Mr Green has invested significant time and resources addressing the issues raised in the investigation, which Spelinspektionen has acknowledged in their findings.”