UKGC caught in secret deals with bookmakers: donations instead of sanctions
The British Gambling Commission (UKGC) has been at the center of a high-profile scandal: over the past five years, the regulator has been found to have negotiated with violators of industry standards, allowing them to avoid public punishment. In exchange for confidentiality, operators sent donations to foundations involved in the fight against gambling addiction. The total amount of such "voluntary" deductions is about £2 million.
According to journalists, among the participants in informal agreements are 38 companies, whose names have not yet been officially disclosed. The total revenue of these operators in the UK alone reached £15.6 billion for the period up to March 2024. One of the few mentioned in the report was Betfair, owned by Flutter Entertainment - they transferred £635 thousand after the tragedy with the suicide of player Luke Ashton, whose story has become a symbol of the failure of the system of self-control and intervention.
The mechanics of the arrangements raise a lot of questions: in fact, the UKGC provided "indulgences" for money, and the affected users and the public remained unaware of the facts of violations. Representatives of the regulator insist that the donations were sent to charitable organizations, but critics argue that this is nothing more than an attempt to hush up cases and preserve the reputation of the operators.
The scandal has already caused a wave of discontent among deputies and activists. They demand full transparency and the publication of a list of companies that have received special treatment. In addition, the objectivity and independence of the regulator itself has been questioned.
celese Haha, classic! First they screwed over the players, then the license turned out to be fake, and now they’re trying to undo everything. A total circus. Yeah, everything will just get bought. They’ll pay whoever they need in Curaçao and get a new license. Money rules everything, especially in this industry.
Mangarin4ik The section about how casinos fire VPNs is a gun. I've never thought about WebRTC and the time zone. Author, thank you, you may have just saved my next deposit.
£2m is ridiculous money compared to £15.6bn in revenue
After the Luke story, I stopped trusting these self-control systems. All this is dust in the eyes.
In fact, these are bribes
I waited for this dirt to surface. The industry is rotten, and the UKGC is its cover.
This is how "regulation" works in the British way – money decides everything. And let the players hang themselves.