Trouble brewing for UK casino sites this New Year

The UK Gambling Commission has been on something of a crusader of late, as they try to sharpen up the gambling laws and the image of the UK gaming scene. This week, news broke that the UKGC (UK Gambling Commission) could be on the verge of handing out warnings to as many as 17 casinos, over their abject failure to stop money laundering from taking place at their domains. At least 5 casinos (which have not yet been named) have already received the warning letter, urging them to alter and amend their anti-money laundering policies to fall in line with the new policies set forth by the UKGC or risk losing their license.

According to the Chief Executive for the UK Gambling Commission, Sarah Harrison, the UK casino online industry operators have an important role to fulfil when it comes to anti-money laundering. That duty is to protect consumers and keep the UK online casino world free of crime.

New Measures

The new measures are just one of several that the UKGC is thinking of implementing over the coming year, as they aim to clean up the industry. Although we are not immediately in the know regarding most of the other measures the gaming authorities plan to take, we do know that FBOTs (fixed betting odds terminals) are set for a make shake-up.

Spending Limit

The UK Government is currently debating whether to limit the maximum amount any person can spend on FBOTs, and deciding just what that limit should be. Final judgment on this issue has not yet been determined, but it has many of the UK’s leading online casinos worried for their future, so much so that many of the bigger sites are considering buy-outs and mergers.

As for the principal issue of money laundering, any casino which has received a letter from the UKGC and doesn’t comply with the new regulations will surely lose their license to offer online casino gaming to UK players in the immediate future.