SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has issued a warning to consumers that the UK subsidiary of Stake will no longer be licensed from next month.
This development follows a notification received by the Commission from TGP Europe, the white-label partner that holds Stake’s UK licence, stating that it will be shutting down Stake.uk.com.
The licence of Stake UK had been placed under supervision due to an investigation into a “widely viewed video displaying the Stake-branded logo, which was distributed on a social media platform and featured an adult actress outside Nottingham Trent University”—a controversial incident reported across UK media.
Under the management of TGP Europe, the licence of Stake UK had previously been fined £320,000 for failing to meet AML standards and for social responsibility failings concerning customer accounts.
Initiating the closure, the Commission ordered TGP Europe to “immediately stop accepting new registrations on the Stake.uk.com platform and remove redirection links from the main Stake website. The final shutdown of the Great Britain site will take place by 11 March 2025.”
A subsidiary of Crypto gaming group Easygo, Stake UK was launched in 2021 as a white label brand managed by TGP Europe. Stake UK offered no cryptocurrency transactions to comply with its UKGC LCCP conditions
Based in the Isle of Man, TGP Europe operates 19 white-label partnerships under UK licences. For Stake, TGP Europe brokered a high-coverage sponsorship deal with Premier League club Everton FC.
“The Commission will be writing to Everton—along with two other football clubs with unlicensed sponsors—warning of the risks of promoting unlawful gambling websites. The Commission will seek assurance from the clubs that they have carried out due diligence on their white-label partners and that consumers in Great Britain cannot transact with the unlicensed sites.”
The enforcement states that clubs sponsored by Stake must ensure effective geo-blocking of gambling sites, though the use of VPNs may bypass these measures. They are required to conduct due diligence to prevent transactions from Great Britain, with the Commission verifying compliance and warning of legal consequences for promoting unlicensed gambling.
TGP Europe and Stake must ensure that their closure complies with UKGC rules, shutting down the website properly and providing clear guidance for customers to close accounts and withdraw funds.
The management and status of white-label partnerships have been earmarked for review by DCMS gambling minister, Baroness Twycross.
DCMS has been instructed to engage with the industry and the Gambling Commission to gather evidence on the prevalence and impact of these practices. Twycross stated that further action will be taken if necessary, as she told audiences at the GambleAware Conference.
An update by Stake, on its UK closure cited: “Stake has made a strategic decision in mutual agreement with TGP Europe to exit white-label agreements and focus on securing local licenses through our in-house platform and operations, building upon our growth in key regulated markets such as our recent expansions into Italy and Brazil.”
