QuinnBet hit with massive fine after social and financial failures
QuinnBet is to pay £609,104 after a UK Gambling Commission investigation uncovered a series of anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures, including cases where customers were able to wager heavily without timely intervention.
QuinnBet (Gibraltar) Limited, which operates quinnbet.com, agreed to make the payment as part of a regulatory settlement following a compliance assessment.
Among the most serious player protection failings, the Commission found that one customer placed around 4,800 bets in a single day and another 7,000 the following day without the activity being identified and flagged for review.
MORE: Top UK gambling sites
Another customer dramatically increased their gambling following a large win, eventually staking more than £215,000 in one day, including multiple bets exceeding £5,000. The activity was not identified until a report was generated the following day.
Gambling Commission Director of Enforcement John Pierce said QuinnBet simply had not acted quickly enough when the alarm bells should have been ringing.
“This case highlights the serious consequences of relying on systems and controls that are unable to identify and respond to indicators of harm and financial crime quickly enough,” he said.
“We expect operators to ensure their safeguards are effective in practice to protect consumers and keep crime out of gambling.
“In this case, the operator recognised the issues and took immediate action to make significant improvements to its systems and controls.
“This included strengthening their AML policies and procedures and improving how they identify and respond to indicators of harm.”
QuinnBet also used a manual process that allowed customers aged 18 to 24 to spend beyond deposit limits the operator had established for the potentially vulnerable age group.
The regulator identified separate AML shortcomings, including a case in which a customer whose payslips showed monthly earnings of around £2,000 was permitted to deposit and lose £9,000 in four days.
Some customers were also allowed to deposit significant sums without QuinnBet establishing the source of funds and confirming that the money came from legitimate sources.
The Commission further found that QuinnBet’s controls did not always ensure Suspicious Activity Reports were submitted promptly once the threshold for suspicion had been reached.
The £609,104 payment forms part of QuinnBet’s settlement with the Gambling Commission following the investigation.
“We expect operators to learn from this case and read the public statement to ensure that they do not make the same mistakes,” Pierce said.
“Our key focus is on ensuring that operators meet the standards we expect and, where they fall short, we will take regulatory action where necessary.”
The UK Gambling Commission is one of the most respected iGaming regulators globally, with their mandate often held up as an example of what other jurisdictions are striving to become.
