Affordability has been at the heart of long-term debate and controversy throughout the course of the Gambling Act review. With the White Paper judgement due soon – according to the government – some are anticipating a need for greater data usage to gain insight into customer behaviour and certain individuals’ financial circumstances. David Clifton, Director of Clifton Davies Consultancy (CDC), …
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As I write this, the global gambling industry community has this week once more descended on London for the return of the ICE 2022 conference. Many of them may have thought that, by now, the potential future UK gambling regulatory landscape would already have been made clear, bearing in mind initial indications that the Government White Paper on the Gambling …
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Back in September last year, the Parliamentary All Party Betting & Gaming Group (APBGG) launched its investigation into the competence and effectiveness of the Gambling Commission. Bearing in mind that the APBGG investigation followed on from heavy criticisms of the regulator by each of the National Audit Office, the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, the Gambling Related Harm All Party Parliamentary Group and the House of …
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12 months ago, 2019 ended with a promise within the Queen’s Speech from the then newly elected Conservative Party government to “carry out a Review of the Gambling Act”. Now, 2020 is ending with that promise being fulfilled. On 8 December 2020, the Gambling Act Review was launched, with a Call for Evidence that runs until midnight on 31 March …
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In the Gambling Commission’s March 2018 Online Gambling Review, published very shortly after Neil McArthur took over as its Chief Executive, the view was expressed that “overall, progress by the online industry to minimise harm has been significantly slower than we expected and required”. That set in motion a chain of events that has reached its zenith in the last …
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Let’s start with some context… It is more than six years now since the Gambling Commission flagged up concerns about the insulation of high-value “VIP customers” from the social responsibility obligations and practices applying elsewhere in gambling operators’ businesses. This was accompanied by a series of regulatory failings where operators had appeared reluctant to interact with commercially valuable customers on …
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UK gambling regulatory developments during the last month or so have led many to query the reason behind the Gambling Commission’s decision to publish (on 12th May) additional customer interaction guidance for remote operators. What some have found puzzling is not only the range of topics covered in that additional guidance but also its prescriptive nature, particularly bearing in mind …
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There are times when writing a monthly column for SBC News presents a challenge. This is one of those months. It’s not because of the paucity of potential content. It’s because of the sheer volume of potential content. As it happens, there is a common thread running through all that I write about below, particularly with a General Election looming …
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The announcement by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) that Gibraltar-based Betfred.com is the most recent recipient of a hefty financial penalty for AML failings has served to raise once again the question why so many overseas-based remote operators have run into such problems with the UK regulator. In the Betfred case, it has not just been a case of concern …
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The Gambling Commission has recently announced that it is reviewing the operating licences of (a) FSB Technology (UK) Limited (who voluntarily suspended activities on their Blackbet white label website) and (b) EveryMatrix Software Limited (in relation to which the Commission also suspended their ability to offer B2C remote betting and casino gaming, including pursuant to white label arrangements). Following on, as they …
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