Compliance Updates – Page 16

Stakelogic Live now broadcasting in the UK

August 19, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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Stakelogic Live continues to establish itself as a leading provider of premium live casino content in core regulated jurisdictions after being awarded a supplier licence by the UK Gambling Commission, allowing it to enter the market for the very first time.

Stakelogic Live is already certified in Malta and the Netherlands and has built a varied portfolio of live casino games across blackjack, roulette, money wheel and slots.

Stakelogic Live is streamed out of dedicated studios in Malta and the Netherlands, which include high-definition cameras, powerful microphones and the latest broadcast and streaming technologies to deliver an engaging and entertaining experience at all times. This has been proven by several of Stakelogic Live’s esteemed clients, such as Unibet, Toto, Betcity and Kansino, who have Dutch-speaking dedicated studios which run 24/7.

Each table is set against a glamorous and opulent background, creating an authentic casino atmosphere. Highly trained dealers host each table and interact with players throughout to ensure they feel like VIPs from their first game round to their last.

Stakelogic Live has also brought several innovative concepts to the live dealer space, including Super Stake. This was first developed by parent company Stake Logic to turbo-charge the gameplay in its classic slots and modern video slots but is now available on select live games.

Super Stake allows players to effectively double their bet to increase the chance of a bonus feature triggering and insane win combinations landing. There is nothing else like it in the live casino market.

With its UK Gambling Commission permit in hand, Stakelogic Live will roll out its suite of games with big-name operators active in the market, just as it has done in the Netherlands and Malta jurisdictions where it has partnered with the likes of Unibet.

Stephan van den Oetelaar, CEO of Stakelogic, said: “This is a pivotal milestone on our journey to becoming the leading provider of live casino content to operators in regulated markets around the world.

“The UK is often seen as the benchmark for regulation, so it is a testament to the quality of our games that we have secured the required approvals to enter the market and help operators take their live casino proposition to the next level.

“Our live dealer titles really are a cut above those of our rivals, allowing operators to strengthen their live casino offering with games that engage and entertain in equal measure. We have had great success in other regulated markets and expect the same in the UK.”

He also added: “I am incredibly proud of the entire Stakelogic Live team for working together to secure our UK Gambling Commission licence. We believe this will be a major market for us and look forward to seeing players enjoy the compelling experience our live dealer titles provide.”

PopOK Gaming Has Received a Certificate for Latvia

August 18, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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The innovative iGaming developer PopOK Gaming is now certified for Latvia.

Further expanding the scope of its activities, PopOK Gaming also reaches Latvia. 18 of the most beloved games from our portfolio, namely Yummy, Lost Treasure, Diamond Flash, 20 Hot Bar, Sultan’s Tale, Los Apaches, Lucky Jungle and the like, as well as the 4-level Progressive Jackpot are now available for locals to try and delight in the fun environment our games will definitely create. This approval is yet another proof of continual momentum PopOK Gaming has been enjoying, opening new doors for our partners to grow their business and powerfully contributing to their revenue streams.

PopOK Gaming Product Manager, Tsovinar Elchyan, said: “This achievement is another important step forward for PopOK Gaming and an impetus for continuous improvements. After receiving the green light to provide our games in Latvia, we are keen on ensuring a remarkable gaming experience for local players and establishing long-term partnerships with our partners.”

PopOK Gaming belongs to Soft Construct (Malta) Limited that holds II Class licence (2239) granted by GLI (Gaming Laboratories International).

Smarkets Fined £630,000 for AML and Social Responsibility Failings

August 13, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has handed a £630,000 fine to betting exchange Smarkets after identifying a series of anti-money laundering and social responsibility failings, including letting a player deposit a six-figure sum without appropriate checks.

According to UKGC, Smarkets allowed customers to gamble without carrying out sufficient source-of-funds checks, while the operator was also found to have failed to identify and interact with customers at risk of experiencing harm.

Specific examples published by the Commission included one customer being allowed to deposit £395,000 during a four-month period, without appropriate source of funds checks being carried out by Smarkets.

The Commission also highlighted a case where an individual was able to transfer significant levels of funds between accounts without scrutiny or source-of-funds checks.

Sarah Gardner, Commission Deputy CEO, said: “This case was identified through compliance checks and once again highlights how we will take action against gambling operators who fail their customers.

“Our investigation into Smarkets unearthed a variety of failures where customers were put at risk of gambling harm.

“It was obvious that poor systems and processes were in place which contributed to these breaches, driven by the company’s failure to effectively implement its policies and controls.”

The operator has also received a formal warning and will undergo an audit to ensure it is effectively implementing its anti-money laundering and social responsibility policies, procedures and controls, in line with section 117(1)(b) of the Gambling Act 2005.

Openbox Gaming offers gateway to Asia

August 11, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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New provider will deliver fresh content opportunitues to both operators and suppliers

Openbox Gaming, a fast-growing distributor of iGaming content across Asia and other markets, has been issued an IOM OGRA Software Supplier licence by the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC).

Having secured the Software Supplier licence, one of the industry’s newest iGaming distributors with a unique USP will be in a position to supply a portfolio of online casino games from a variety of internal and external suppliers, to licensed B2B gaming partners and B2C operators.

Richard Hogg, CEO of Openbox Gaming, commented: “We are excited to be able to continue in our mission to deliver gaming content to regulated jurisdictions worldwide and see this as a major step in achieving those objectives. We selected the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission due to its established and proven reputation and its robust licensing process, which provides the ideal platform for our expansion into regulated markets.”

Tony Ure, Head of eGaming, Digital Isle of Man added: “It is a pleasure to welcome Openbox Gaming to the Island. Ensuring that the Island has a supportive ecosystem for gaming companies to operate their business, whilst maintaining our reputation as a highly regulated jurisdiction that prides itself on player protection is key to continuing the growth of this sector on the Isle of Man. I wish Openbox Gaming every success with their future ventures.”

Lithuanian Regulator Issues Fines to Gaming Strategy Group and Tete-a-Tete Casino

August 6, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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Lithuania’s Gambling Supervisory Authority has issued fines to Gaming Strategy Group, the operator of Betsson-owned Betsafe in the country, and Tete-a-Tete Casino.

Gaming Strategy Group was fined €25,000 for breaching rules regarding advertising after it distributed a newsletter to 10,430 customers about an online game.

Sent in February this year, the newsletter included information about the game and its features, as well as the option for players to click on links to log in to their account or to request a new password if they had forgotten their login details.

Last year, the Lithuanian government introduced a ban on range of gambling advertising, including promotional bonuses. The law on gambling prohibits the promotion of gambling through activities such as special events, test games, promotions, discounts, gifts and other incentives.

In its ruling, the Gambling Supervisory Authority said that as the newsletter’s intention was to draw attention to a gambling service and specific details about the game, including its win percentage and free spins features, this was in breach of Article 10 (19) of Lithuania’s gambling regulations (ALI).

In the case of Tete-a-Tete Casino, the Gambling Supervisory Authority issued the operator a fine of €15,000 for allowing players located outside Lithuania to gamble through its website remotely.

The regulator said this breached Article 205, Part 3, Article 201, Part 1 of the ALI as gambling with an operator licensed in Lithuania while not physically located in the country is illegal on the part of the gambling operator.

Tete-a-Tete Casino was also warned that its licence could be suspended if it does not put in place the relevant processes to halt such activity in the future. The operator has until 10 August to comply with the request.

The Gambling Supervisory Authority noted that neither decision was final, and both of the operators can appeal the rulings.

IBAS Unveils New Plans to Become the First Gambling Ombudsman

August 6, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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The Independent Betting Adjudication Service (IBAS) has unveiled plans to become the new Gambling Ombudsman.

IBAS believes the long-awaited UK Government White Paper will call for the creation of a new Ombudsman, once released. IBAS claims it is the perfect candidate for the role, aiming to protect consumers from gambling harm while raising industry standards across the board.

The body already offers an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service – as opposed to the Gambling Commission, which is the official route for resolving issues.

Per its bid to become the UK’s first Gambling Ombudsman, IBAS has outlined its aims and goals should it assume the position.

IBAS has called for its Ombudsman governance framework setting to be produced outside its remit; new and compulsory funding from the industry to ensure impartiality remains central to all gambling disputes; and a Fair Play Code – outlining the criteria for deciding complaints, including fairness terms & conditions for harmful gambling complaints.

“IBAS’s experience, expertise and commitment to independent decisions are unparalleled – having resolved over 85,000 gambling disputes. I welcome the creation of a new Ombudsman, but for this to work it needs to be run by an organisation that understands the sector and has a track record of helping and protecting consumers. An Ombudsman with additional resources, built on the foundations of IBAS is best placed to hit the ground running, protecting consumers, and raising industry standards through fair, consistent decision making and constructive dispute avoidance feedback,” Richard Hayler, Managing Director of IBAS, said.

“It’s an exciting time for the gambling industry. There is a real opportunity to enhance the service offered to gambling customers through a new Ombudsman. IBAS has been committed to providing an accessible, fair, and independent service to all gambling consumers. Our plan for a Gambling Ombudsman would make sure consumers are protected and avoid the backlog of complaints. On top of this, this plan provides a solution that works for Government, the Regulator, and the industry,” Andrew Fraser, Chairman of IBAS, said.

PopOK Gaming Slots Are Now Certified for Romania

August 3, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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Modern iGaming content developer PopOK Gaming has successfully passed the certification for Romania to provide its iGaming solutions in the region.

The diverse gaming catalogue of PopOK Gaming is now fully compliant with all the regulations set by the ONJN Romania. 18 of its beloved games, such as Yummy, Lost Treasure, Diamond Flash, 20 Hot Bar, Blazing Hot, Lucky Jungle and more, as well as our 4-level Progressive Jackpot, are now ready to capture the hearts of local players and become their favourite.

This certificate acquisition has granted PopOK Gaming further game distribution to the Romanian region and position strengthening in the regulated market. This is a real breakthrough that will certainly go a long way in providing players with high-quality gaming solutions in a secure gaming environment and thereby highly contributing to the partners’ business.

PopOK Gaming Product Manager, Tsovinar Elchyan, said, “We are thrilled to have our games available for the Romanian audience. This is a great start to build strong relationships with our local partners and share promising future achievements.”

Important note: PopOK Gaming belongs to Soft Construct (Malta) Limited that holds II Class license (2239) granted by ONJN (Romanian National Gambling Office).

Parimatch Tech Strengthened Its Positions With GLI Certifications

August 2, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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Parimatch Tech has achieved the highly sought-after B2B certification from Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) for sports and casinos, adding another competitive market to its growing global reach.

With the GLI19 and GLI33 certifications, Parimatch Tech has secured permission to offer its products and services to operators in the fast-expanding markets. In-house developed by Parimatch Tech, casino platform EVA is used for services that provide games providers aggregation platform, seamless casino wallet with bonuses, and tournaments-related services.

Parimatch Tech will deliver its sportsbook and casino products to partnership operators according to the recently announced business model diversification. The new approach includes a complete betting coverage of 33 sports, more than 10 000 pre-match, and 50 000 monthly live events across several markets. In the casino, players can expect a huge game portfolio of over 10 000 games from 200+ providers, including industry leaders, and personalization features such as geolocation and personal favorites. All personalization features are integrated with intelligent gamification tools like multiplayer tournaments, missions, badges, and more.

“Gaming Laboratories International is a team of professionals that apart every detail of your software and hardware, so their certifications are rightfully considered a quality mark in the industry. Obtaining GLI19 and GLI33 certifications underlines the quality of our products developed for the global expansion of the Parimatch brand. We are longingly expecting exciting opportunities for further development.” — said Yurii Shevchuk, Head of Compliance at Parimatch Tech.

“It was great to support the Parimatch Tech team during this journey and to assist them throughout their certification process. Adopting GLI standards will allow Yuri and the Parimatch Tech team to navigate easily into new markets. We are happy for Parimatch Tech and excited to continue this productive relationship.” — said Francesca Capomolla, Account Manager at EMEA.

Parimatch Tech emphasizes that in sync with the necessary benchmark certifications, the company follows a security strategy to prevent risks associated with access, data security, product security, network security, employee security, and supply chain threats. The company’s IT security strategy includes in-depth knowledge of fraud and threat actor approaches, the best security practices, and data protection trends to ensure the safety of customers and businesses from cyberattacks.

German City to Shut All Betting Shops Amid Money-laundering Allegations

July 31, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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The German city of Bremen is planning to shut down all of its betting shops after the interior senator said their owners had failed to convince him that they were not fronts for money laundering.

Bremen, Germany’s smallest city-state, announced on Wednesday it had issued rejection notices to 32 establishments that had applied for betting licences under a new gambling law, meaning any bets placed on their premises would with immediate effect be deemed illegal.

The betting shops have until 5 August to legally challenge the decision or supply the senate with paperwork showing how they obtained their startup capital to open their businesses in the first place, such as a loan agreement with a bank.

Bremen authorities say they are tackling a problem that is not unique to their city but widespread across Germany. A 2019 report by the finance ministry and federal police said criminals were not only using legal gambling practices to launder dirty money but often directly investing money to buy up betting shops.

In some such cases, the entire gambling activity taking place on the shop’s premises was merely “simulated” and the profits showing up in the books came from illegal activities such as drug dealing, the report said.

Unlike in Britain, where most high-street betting establishments are run by large gambling companies such as William Hill or Ladbrokes, in Germany betting shops are mostly run by smaller businesses that buy a franchise licence from larger firms.

“At its core, this is about checking the reliability of these operators. We also want to guarantee that no money from dodgy businesses like drug dealing or human trafficking is being laundered here and thus flows into legal money cycles,” Ulrich Mäurer, Bremen’s senator for interior affairs, said.

Over the past few months, Bremen authorities approached four large betting companies that operate in the city, asking them to provide written evidence of how their franchise holders had acquired their startup capital, usually a sum of up to €120,000.

None of the betting shops had since handed in paperwork that met the authorities’ requirements, a Bremen senate spokesperson said. In one instance an application for a gambling licence had been rejected because the betting shop was located too close to a school, rather than because of the missing paperwork.

“Other states in Germany are looking with close interest at what we are achieving by taking this step. If we are successful, I expect many of them will follow suit,” said a spokesperson, Rose Gerdts-Schiffler.

The closures were criticised by Germany’s Sports Betting Association, whose president, Mathias Dahms, said the city’s actions were “arbitrary, legally questionable and completely out of proportion, motivated purely by political goals”.

International sports betting operator Pinnacle joins integrity body IBIA

July 28, 2022 Published by EuropeanGaming.eu

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International online sports betting brand Pinnacle has become a member of the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA). Pinnacle (formerly known as Pinnacle Sports) was established in 1998 and has operating licences in multiple jurisdictions including Malta, Sweden and Italy. Pinnacle offers a wide range of sports betting options and was one of the earliest adopters of esports betting markets, which dates back to 2010.

Pinnacle will now feed into IBIA’s leading global betting integrity monitoring and alert platform. The operator joins many of the leading regulated sports betting operators in the world, with the association’s members accounting for over $137bn (€115bn) in global betting turnover per annum and nearly 50% of all regulated commercial operator online betting activity.

Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA, said: “The size and scope of Pinnacle’s sports betting operation makes it a valuable addition to IBIA’s global monitoring and alert network. Our growing roster of members are committed to high levels of integrity and to the protection of sporting events and betting products alike. It is pleasing that so many leading operators like Pinnacle have chosen IBIA as their preferred sports betting integrity partner.”

Paris Smith, Pinnacle CEO, said: “Our focus on integrity not only applies to our clients, but also the governing bodies themselves, an area which is increasingly important for responsible gaming operators. We are delighted to become members of the IBIA and look forward to working closely with the organisation to combat betting-related corruption and manipulation.”

Pinnacle’s Sport Integrity Manager, Gareth Gray said: “At Pinnacle, integrity is a priority. By becoming a member of IBIA, this highlights our focus on sporting integrity and shows our commitment to combatting sporting manipulation and providing our customers a safe and enjoyable environment.”

The International Betting Integrity Association is the leading global voice on integrity for the licensed betting industry. It is run by operators for operators, protecting its members from corruption through collective action. Its monitoring and alert platform is a highly effective anti-corruption tool that detects and reports suspicious activity on its members’ betting markets. The association has longstanding information-sharing partnerships with leading sports and gambling regulators to utilise its data and prosecute corruption. It represents the sector at high-level policy discussion forums such as the IOC, UN, Council of Europe, and European Commission.

Tag: Compliance Updates

Stakelogic Live now broadcasting in the UK

PopOK Gaming Has Received a Certificate for Latvia

Smarkets Fined £630,000 for AML and Social Responsibility Failings

Openbox Gaming offers gateway to Asia

Lithuanian Regulator Issues Fines to Gaming Strategy Group and Tete-a-Tete Casino

IBAS Unveils New Plans to Become the First Gambling Ombudsman

PopOK Gaming Slots Are Now Certified for Romania

Parimatch Tech Strengthened Its Positions With GLI Certifications

German City to Shut All Betting Shops Amid Money-laundering Allegations

International sports betting operator Pinnacle joins integrity body IBIA

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