Victoria Gate Casino’s License Suspended for Several Alleged Failures

British regulator the Gambling Commission has suspended the license held by the operator of the Victoria Gate Casino in Leeds for suspected anti-money laundering (AML) failures and counter-terrorist financing risks.

The Commission is to carry out a review under section 116 of the Gambling Act 2005, and follows concerns that activities may have been carried out contrary to the act. The suspension is effective immediately, and VGC Leeds is required to halt all operations.

What VGC Leeds is accused of

VGC Leeds Limited is believed to have failed to maintain and implement effective anti-money laundering policies, procedures and controls. The Commission said the alleged failings are “significant” and raise questions about the overall effectiveness of its governance and risk management arrangements. According to the Commission, this represents a serious threat to the licensing objectives, and in particular keeping crime out of gambling.

The Commission said in its ruling: “We have made it clear to the operator that during the suspension, we expect it to focus on treating consumers fairly and keeping them fully informed of any developments which impact them.”

Previous issue

VGC Leeds was previously given a penalty by the Commission in 2021. The operator had to pay a £450,000 regulatory settlement for social responsibility and anti-money laundering failures. On that occasion, VGC was said to have failed in the way it identified and managed customers who were at higher risk of money laundering and gambling-related harm.

Victoria Gate Casino is located in central Leeds and offers 22 live betting tables and more than 175 slots and electronic roulette games. The venue also offers bars, the screening of sports events and DJs.

According to the BBC, a notice on the door of the casino has informed customers that the venue is temporarily closed while its license is under review, but that it hopes to open and welcome players back very soon.

A busy week for the Commission

VGC Leeds’ issue marked the second gambling license suspension enforced by the Commission in a number of days. Last week, the Commission also suspended the license held by supplier Spribe for its failure to obtain a holding license.

While Spribe has held a remote operating license in the UK since late 2020, it was recently informed by the Commission it needs to add a hosting license to its existing one. Spribe is unable to operate in the UK until that license is obtained.

The hosting license in question is required when a supplier hosts games on its own servers which can be accessed from players across several operators at a time. Spribe appeared to be unaware of this requirement, but told Betting.co.uk it is going through the process to obtain this license and expects to be live again in the UK by the end of November.

What this means

Recent steps taken by the Commission may indicate it is prepared to come down harder on operators and suppliers who do not comply with its regulations. The cases of Spribe and VGC may not be related as such, but it is intriguing that both suspensions were announced within the same week; whether that is coincidental is unclear.

The allegations made against VGC Leeds are incredibly serious and should the investigation conclude there is truth to the Commission’s suspicions, VGC Leeds could be facing a hefty fine at the very least; especially with this being its second AML offence.

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