Over €48M Issued as Fines by Gambling Regulators in 2021

GamblingIndustryFines.com has released a report about fines slapped on operators throughout 2021. A total of €48,072,047 was slapped on different sports betting and casino companies for 2021. These fines are from a wide array of regulators and authorities worldwide.

UKGC and Spelinspektionen Among the Leaders in Issuing Fines

The busiest of the regulators were from the United Kingdom, Australia, the U.S., and Europe. Leading the list of regulators that issued the highest number of fines are the UK Gambling Commission, the Kansspelautoriteit of the Netherlands, and Spelinspektionen, which is the Swedish Gambling Authority.

These regulators issued the most sanctions to a wide range of regulated land-based and online sports betting and casino operators. The sanctions comprised warnings and financial penalties. Some of these operators received sanctions for repeat offenses. Speaking of offenses, the following are some of the key failings that led to sanctions in 2021:

Social responsibility flaws
Anti-money-laundering shortcomings
Offering bonuses in violation of local gaming regulations
Failing to pick out customers who are at risk of falling into problem gambling
Failure to put in place stringent Anti-Money Laundering measures
Offering odds on matches featuring underage players
Failure to prohibit overspending as well as imposing limits on player accounts
Operating unregulated domains

Casumo and Daub Alderney Lead With the Biggest Financial Sanctions

Casumo was on the end of the highest financial sanction in 2021. This was after the UKGC fined the iGaming platform a total of £6,000,000 ($8.2M). The fine was issued in March for violating anti-money laundering regulations.

The regulator also found the iGaming platform to have failed in its ensuring its customers were playing responsibly. There was an instance where Casumo permitted one of its customers to lose a whopping £1.1 million over three years. And the operator didn’t impose any responsible gambling restrictions.

Daub Alderney was second when it comes to the largest fine issued in 2021. The operator was at the end of a £5.85 million fine imposed for failing to operate within AML and social responsibility regulations.

Other companies that breached various regulations and ended up paying fines include:

Betway
Buzz Group Ltd
Greentube Alderney
Tipico Co. Ltd
LeoVegas
EU Lotto
Caesars Entertainment

iGaming operators weren’t the only affected stakeholders in the gambling industry. Regulators also aimed at gambling affiliates in 2021. Some of these affiliates received financial sanctions for various illegal activities.

For instance, the Dutch gambling watchdog sanctioned various affiliates for offering players illegal bonuses. This was in December. The ACMA of Australia blocked several unregulated websites targeting the Australian market.

There were huge fines issued over 2021. But the good news revealed by the report showed that overall industry fines slapped by regulators were lower by £4 million compared to the previous year.

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Nerijus Grenda

Published: 13 Jan 2022

| Updated: 13 Mar 2023

Nerijus Grenda is a prolific contributor to the GoodLuckMate site. With a deep understanding of the online casino industry, gained from his own experience as an avid player, he offers valuable insights on what sets the best casinos apart from the rest. As a writer, Nerijus shares his expertise through expert analysis and thoughtful commentary on various topics related to online gambling, including casino reviews, game guides and industry trends.

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