Parting grift
Ex-Isle of Man licensee handed £3.9m fine for AML failure
Months after license surrender, SBOTOP operator admits to “significant” compliance failures.
In +More: Thai government to withdraw its casino bill.
The Dutch regulator hands out a fine to an illegal gambling website influencer.
France: The regulator unveils a strategic roadmap.
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Nice ‘n’ sleazy
Crime and punishment: The company behind the Asian-facing operator SBOTOP has been fined £3.9m by the Isle of Man’s gambling authorities after having been found guilty of a “significant” number of AML and terrorist financing gambling code breaches.
Hands up: The original fine was £5.6m but Celton Manx, which surrendered its Isle of Man license in May, got a 30% discount due to its cooperation with the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission’s investigation.
An inspector calls: The investigation into Celton Manx was launched in October last year. An initial inspection found from a sample of files a “significant number of material contraventions” of the IoM’s gambling code, some of which were of a “systemic nature.”
The subsequent full investigation detailed 15 offences including a failure to show evidence that it had carried out an assessment of the AML or terrorist financing risks posed by a customer.
The company also failed to conduct enhanced due diligence despite some customers being identified as posing a higher risk of money laundering and/or terrorist financing.
And it failed to establish, record, maintain or operate appropriate procedures and controls sufficiently to ensure the verification of identity of its customers.
Amateur hour: Also included in the charge sheet, it was found that Celton Manx employed an AML terrorist financing officer who was patently not up for the job.
In the words of the findings, the person in question was “unable to demonstrate having sufficient expertise to properly discharge the responsibilities of these positions.”
Manx for the Mummery: Celton Manx, led by Bill Mummery, the former head of the Isle of Man eGaming Development, operated various SBO-monikered brands from the Isle of Man between 2008 and May this year.
Closing the gate: Ahead of the results of the investigation the Isle of Man government published a National Risk Assessment, which said it has “limited appetite” for doing business with online gaming entities where there is ownership of control from either East or Southeast Asia.
Acknowledging this, the GSC said it was “appropriate to note” that going forward the Commission is likely to “find unacceptable obvious gaps in an operator’s operational procedures and controls” without risks being “appropriately assessed and mitigated.”
Prove it: It pointedly added that businesses operating in Southeast Asia must demonstrate they have the “necessary knowledge, experience and sophistication to ensure that the products and services they are offering cannot be exploited.”
Notably, the risk assessment statement was part of the Isle of Man’s preparations for an upcoming MONEYVAL evaluation.
Handing in your badge: Celton Manx’s surrender of its license came in the same month that Isle of Man-based white-label provider TGP Europe handed back its UK license to the UK Gambling Commission after being told it needed to pay a £3m penalty and make “significant” improvements if it wished to continue conducting business into the UK.
At the time, the UKGC told English football clubs to be wary of continuing sponsorship dealings with largely Asian-facing gambling, warning about links to offshore gambling.
Black and white and gray all over: SBOTOP remains the front-of-shirt sponsor at English Premier League club Fulham for next season until the voluntary ban on betting companies comes into force for the 2026/27 season.
Scamchester: Recall, at the same time when the GSC was opening its investigation into Celton Manx in October last year, a UN report found that IoM licensee King Gaming had employed people who were previously convicted by the Chinese authorities for conducting a massive fraud operation that swindled millions of dollars from victims in China.
👀 The UK report noted one unnamed online gambling group, which it said represented “one of the clearest examples of criminality.”
It is an entity with “obscure ownership” that has secured deals with several Premier League clubs and operates websites that target several illegal betting markets in East and Southeast Asia, Australia and elsewhere.
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+More
Thai troubles
Thailand: The government is to withdraw a controversial bill to legalise casinos from parliament following mounting opposition to the plans and a bout of political turmoil that has reduced the ruling coalition’s majority.
According to the Bangkok Post, a motion to withdraw the entertainment complex bill from the current session of parliament will be launched on Wednesday.
The government previously indicated it would delay the introduction of the bill, saying it needed more time to address concerns about problem gambling and money laundering.
Opposition to the government’s planned legislation grew in recent weeks with the People’s Party being the latest to call on Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra to pull it. A petition to withdraw the bill alongside an online gaming bill was also submitted to Shinawatra.
The group joined the Bhumjaithai Party and a Senate panel in opposing the entertainment complex bill.
Fafabet fine: Taichi Tech, which operates the Fafabet brand in the UK, has been fined £170,000 for regulatory failures including the use of unfair terms and conditions. The UKGC investigation concluded that the company breached the fair and open licensing condition by allowing itself to close customer accounts or forfeit winnings without clear justification.
Maryland: The regulators have proposed changes to the promotional credits regime for OSB operators, reducing the deductions allowable from 20% to 5% This follows the successful move in the legislature to raise Maryland's sports-betting tax from 15% to 20%.
Brazil: The Senate could be about to vote on the legalization of land-based casinos this week, potentially as early as today, Tuesday July 8. The bill would allow for at least one casino in each state in Brazil with the exception of São Paulo which would be allowed three, and Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Amazonas and Pará which would be allowed two each. If the Senate votes yes, the bill would go to President Lula, who is anticipated to approve the legalization.
Read ahead
California showdown: A key state Senate committee will hear AB 831 today, a bill that could ban online sweepstakes casinos and impose criminal penalties on all involved parties. See Thursday’s edition of C+M for the fallout.
Dutch influencer action
Stay in your lane: The Netherlands gambling watchdog, the KSA, has for the first time levied a charge against an influencer for promoting illegal gambling services, fining a YouTuber called LeftlanePapi up to €75k for violations of the law.
On the influencer’s YouTube channel, videos were shown with live streams of online gambling at illegal providers while ads played for illegal sites.
The KSA said the number of reports from influencers posting images on various social media platforms about how they gamble illegally has been increasing lately.
It said in a statement that it took such activities “very seriously, because these influencers use their activities to appeal to a (very) young target group.
“When influencers do not remove their content within 48 hours after a warning from the KSA, sanctioning action is taken.”
In the case of LeftlanePapi, the KSA initially gave the influencer a warning but, because the content in question was not removed after the warning and new streams were made, it subsequently imposed a penalty payment.
The KSA said it has similarly warned several other influencers.
Twin town: The regulator said the move to fine the YouTuber showed it was adopting a twin-track policy. After a violation of an infringement, influencers receive a message that they must stop their activities within 48 hours and that illegal content must be removed.
If the influencer fails to comply, the KSA will approach the social media platform to ensure that malicious content is removed anyway and the influencer is charged with a penalty payment.
Trade body merger: Separately, it has been reported that two of the industry trade bodies in the Netherlands, VNLOK and NOGA, are to merge in light of a rapidly shifting regulatory landscape. The pair will formalise the agreement in the coming weeks, merging both memberships under the VNLOK banner.
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Tour d’horizon
The path less followed: L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has unveiled its strategic roadmap following the publication of its 2024 market review. Building on what the authority said was a milestone year, where GGR rose 47% YoY to €14bn, the ANJ is charting a decisive shift in its regulatory approach.
But the new tax rates due to come into force in July are seeing some question the viability of the market, with market leader Betclic having previously called the changes “anti-competitive.”
The primary aim of the new strategy is to reduce both the number and share of excessive gamblers. With problem gambling still accounting for over 38% of sector turnover, and excessive play alone at 21%, ANJ is pushing for operators to recalibrate business models away from high-frequency, high-risk practices.
The regulator will strengthen tools such as self-exclusion, data-driven addiction detection, and tighter scrutiny of VIP programmes, bonuses and loyalty incentives.
Le crackdown: A second pillar is the ongoing battle against unregulated gaming. In 2024, ANJ blocked more than 1,335 black market URLs and imposed multiple sanctions, including an €800k fine on SPS Betting for failing to implement proper self‑exclusion.
Administrative powers to block or delist non‑compliant sites have allowed faster, more decisive intervention.
The regulator intends to deepen its analytical grasp of market trends by applying scientific research as a core tool for policy making. It will foster dialog across European regulators and industry operators and position itself as a model public institution.
Racking up the rates: According to France’s 2025 Social Security Financing Act, the government has raised levy rates on GGR and introduced a new advertising tax.
Lottery and draw games see their tax increase 100bps to 69%, while the social security contribution increases from 6.2% to 7.2%
The tax rate on draw and instant games also rises 100bps to 56.5%, with CSG now at 7.2%.
In sports betting, the levy increases by 100bps to 42.1%, plus CSG is now 7.6%; while for online sports betting the tax jumps significantly from 54.9% to 59.3%, with a sharp CSG hike from 10.6% to 15%.
For online poker, a brand-new levy of 10% on GGR replaces the old 0.2% of stakes model.
Online horse-race betting sees no change in CSG, but the levy paid to racecourse bodies increases from 52.3% to 52.9%.
Lastly, a new 15% tax on all advertising and promotional spend by gambling operators (including media, sponsorship, loyalty campaigns) is also to be introduced.
FDJ United has previously projected an EBITDA hit of about €45m in 2025 due to these tax hikes, potentially rising to €90m by July 2026. Similarly, Banijay, the entertainment group that owns Betclic, flagged a roughly €20m burden.
Calendar
July 9-12: National Council of Legislators from Gaming States Summer Meeting, Kentucky
Jul 14-16: OIGA, Oklahoma City
Sep 3-4: Knownow conference, London
Sep 16-17: Player Protection Symposium, Lisbon
Oct 20-23: IAGR, Toronto
Nov 18: Sustainable Gambling Conference, Brussels
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