Author: Daniel Williams

Earlier this week, it was announced that the UK government will have an early review of the Horserace Betting Levy. The news was well-received by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) as the racing industry was working on a recovery plan to overcome the huge losses that came as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The last time the levy was reformed was in 2017 when it extended to offshore bookmakers that offer bets on British racing. Although the next review was scheduled for 2024, the government announced that it will…

The upcoming year will introduce a big change for the UK National Lottery as the minimum age will be raised. Currently, individuals who are 16 years of age or older can participate in the National Lottery. Towards the end of 2021, however, the minimum age for individuals who want to engage in the lottery will be increased to 18. The reported change of the age limits followed the gambling laws review that was put in force by the Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden. While the new age limit will be official…

The brother of Chelsea FC’s legend John Terry – Paul – has faced a £1,000 fine from the Football Association (FA) for breaking the country’s gambling rules. Mr Terry admitted that he had made 209 breaches of the UK betting regulations by making bets on football matches, including 35 bets on competitions his club had participated in. The losses of the West Brom loans manager amounted to a total of £46,916. As mentioned above, the bets he made included competitions that involved his club. Despite all questions raised by his…

A corruption investigator of Western Australia is inspecting whether the public servant Paul Whyte was intentionally trying to sell land to the State Government at a higher price to support his gambling associates. The investigation is supposed to reveal the truth about the sale of the Roebourne estate, which was sold to the State Government for $1.3 million. A representative of the Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) said that this price was intentionally inflated and the land could have been bought cheaper. The worst part about this deal is that…

This week, ministers in the UK are expected to take into consideration the long-discussed ban on gambling companies’ sponsorship agreements with professional sports clubs in a long-awaited review of gambling legislation. The ban on gambling sponsorship deals and the removal of betting companies’ logos from football clubs’ shirts has been one of the most controversial measures that are to be discussed in the review of the country’s 2005 Gambling Act, which is aimed at ensuring better consumer protection across the UK gambling industry and making the sector more up to…

This week, the Gambling Division of the Gibraltar Government announced it had completed its 12-month thematic review of the anti-money laundering risk assessment controls and processes of the licensed online gambling companies that offer their services to local customers. The review has been focused on making sure that operators have adopted robust and adequate anti-money laundering measures that would help them identify and tackle any possible challenges in customer onboarding and ongoing contact in line with Gibraltar’s legislation. The Government’s Gambling Division further shared that the review engaged and analysed…

Earlier this week, Ireland has brought its new interim Gaming and Lotteries act into effect ahead of the massive regulatory reform of the local gambling sector. The Gambling and Lotteries (Amendment) Act 2019 came into effect on December 1st and is focused on making the promotion of land-based gambling services more up to date. The new piece of legislation is amending Ireland’s Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956-2013. It is set to focus on streamlining the application process for gambling and lottery licences and the process for gaming and lottery services…

Gambling companies’ lobbyists had previously warned that the reduction of the maximum betting stakes of the fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) from £100 to £2 would lead to serious financial difficulties and the loss of about 21,000 jobs across the sector. According to reports, British punters lost £700 million less on the controversial betting machines in the year following the country’s Government imposed stricter measures on the FOBTs. The predictions for more than 20,000 job losses in the gambling industry in case local lawmakers proceeded with the stricter regulatory policy, however,…

Experts have revealed that some money laundering during the five months of coronavirus restrictions ended up with a massive AU$305-million increase in the profits generated by so-called pokies in Australia. According to the latest figures provided by the Liquor and Gaming regulatory body in the state of New South Wales (NSW), poker machine profits rose by more than 10% in comparison to the ones generated over the same period a year earlier, although in 2020 there were many restrictions imposed on local clubs and pubs, including a lockdown. In the…

Most states in Australia have turned a blind eye on the regulation of so-called casino junket operators, although the tours for affluent high-roller customers have been constituting a prime risk for terrorism financing and money laundering operations. The gambling watchdog in Queensland is the only state authority that has an active licensing procedure for the junkets, while the states of Victoria and Western Australia stopped the approval process over 10 years ago. The controversial operators that facilitated tours for wealthy gamblers from Mainland China to Australia for various gambling events.…