William Hill‘s Mr. Green has been fined £3 million by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) for failing to protect problem gamblers.
According to the UKGC, the operator also failed to have procedures that ensured players were using money from genuine sources.
Mr. Green’s fine
In a statement on the UKGC website, the Commission said that Mr. Green:
- Did not carry out social responsibility interaction with a customer who won £50,000, gambled it away and deposited thousands more pounds;
- Took ten-year-old evidence of a £176,000 claims payout as satisfactory evidence of source of funds (SOF) for a customer who deposited over £1m;
- Accepted a photograph of a laptop screen showing currency in dollars on an alleged crypto trading account as adequate SOF.
The UKGC also urged all operators to read their statement to avoid “making the same mistakes as Mr. Green”.
Earlier this month, Mr. Green ordered UK-based casino affiliates to adopt advertising the brand. But it’s unknown whether or not this is linked to the fine.
A crackdown by the Commission
Including Mr. Green, nine operators have now been punished by the UKGC – as part of a regulator probe. Since 2018, this investigation has resulted in more than £20 million in fines having to be paid.
On top of the above, six operators are no longer allowed to take money from customers in the UK. These surrendered their licences, while another six have received a formal warning. Moreover, one has been given advice on conduct and two weren’t hit with further action.
Richard Watson, Executive Director of the UKGC, spoke about Mr. Green’s fine. His words were as follows.
“Our investigation uncovered systemic failings in respect of both Mr Green’s social responsibility and AML controls which affected a significant number of customers across its online casinos.
“Consumers in Britain have the right to know that there are checks and balances in place which will help keep them safe and ensure gambling is crime-free – and we will continue to crack down on operators who fail in this area.”
