A recent investigation of The Sunday Times has found hundreds of foreign gambling companies to be taking advantage of an existing loophole in the UK legislation that allows them access to local players.
According to reports, BOB Sports, also known as BOB88, and about 700 other unlicensed gambling companies have been using a so-called “white-labelling” loophole to get to British customers and lure them with their services. Such operators simply pay another company to use their licence and basically, this is how they avoid the usual probes from local regulatory bodies and authorities.
The Sunday Times has found the licence holder of BOB88 – TGP Europe – had an office on the Isle of Man, which has been used by a total of 15 gambling brands operating under a single licence in the UK. Currently, part of them is behind some of the largest sponsorship agreement in British football. As reported by The Sunday Times, some of the companies in question include SBOTOP, the official partner of Leeds United; the Asian betting partner of Manchester United, Yabo; the shirt sponsor of Newcastle United, Fun88, as well as the betting partner of Arsenal F.C., SportsBetio.
Each of the foreign unlicensed operators has been found to be listed as a white-label company under a single operating licence held by TGP Europe. For the time being, it is still unknown who is the actual owner of the majority of these online gambling platforms. According to an industry source cited by The Sunday Times, white-labelling is a quick and easy way used by operators to access the British gambling sector without observing the due diligence required by the country’s regulators.
Unlicensed Foreign Gambling Companies Among Major British Football Club Sponsors
According to anti-gambling campaigners, gambling causes a serious problem in the UK when it comes to the negative effect on people and communities. Data provided by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) says there were about 340,000 gambling addicts in the country. The gambling regulatory body’s report also suggested that men were five times more likely to become problem gamblers than women. Gambling addicts also tended to be unemployed, and were likely to be between 25 and 34 years of age, if male
According to information provided by the UKGC, British players lost a total of £14.4 billion to gambling services in the year that ended on March 31st, 2019.
As far as so-called white-label gambling companies are concerned, the investigators of the UK Gambling Commission have found that many of these operators are also providing an ineffective service that could put their customers at risk. Some companies simply do not make the due diligence checks adequately, especially when it comes to customers who show signs of problem gambling behaviour.
Furthermore, it has been exactly the white-label model that provided operators such as BK8 with the chance to enter into a sponsorship agreement with local football clubs. According to reports, unlicensed gambling companies have donated millions of pounds to the English Premier League (EPL), and regulatory concern is constantly increasing, as the system is basically open to money laundering and organised crime.
About a week ago, local anti-gambling campaigners and political figures called for a full investigation of white-label operators, as the system used by such companies has exposed serious flaws in the country’s gambling regulation.
- Author
Olivia Cole
