British regulator slaps LeoVegas with £1.2m penalty

The Gambling Commission has ordered LeoVegas to undergo an audit of AML and social responsibility policies.

UK.- The Gambling Commission has issued LeoVegas with a warning and a £1.2m penalty for social responsibility and anti-money laundering failings. The regulator found that the Swedish operator had “not sufficiently taken into account the Commission’s 2019 guidance on customer interaction” and had not enforced its policy of interacting with customers who displayed signs of gambling harm. 

It also found that the company, which operates LeoVegas, Bet UK, Pink Casino, Slot Boss and 21.co.uk, had relied on ineffective threshold triggers and inadequate information on income or wealth for its it AML duties. It said the financial triggers were too high for effective risk management and allowed significant spending in short periods of time.

On social responsibility, LeoVegas was found to have ignored signs such as deposits denied, cancelled withdrawals, long sessions and sessions late at night or early in the morning. The operator must now complete an audit of its AML and social responsibility policies, procedures and controls.

Leanne Oxley, the Gambling Commission’s director of enforcement and intelligence, said: “We identified this through focused compliance activity and we will continue to take action against other operators if they do not learn the lessons our enforcement work is providing.

“This case is a further example of operators failing to protect customers and failing to be alive to money laundering risks within their business.”

In June, the Swedish Economic Crime Authority (Ekobrottsmyndigheten) confirmed that it had begun a preliminary investigation into potential insider trading in LeoVegas shares. The gaming firm’s shares are listed on the Stockholm Nasdaq.

The probe comes a month after MGM Resorts offered €576.6m to acquire the company. LeoVegas says that no employee, executive or board member has been notified about any criminal suspicion and has no further information to provide at this time.