UKGC MGA Curacao eGaming

‘Already this year we have seen multiple casino licenses suspended, revoked or disputed in 2021! Take a look at some of million+ Sterling fines!’ (Photo by Liza Uleksina on Unsplash)

Just to give us all the satisfaction that the regulatory authorities are doing their job, we round up the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), UK Gambling Commission, and Curacao eGaming licensing news for 2021. We are now 4 months into the year and multiple casino licenses suspended, revoked or disputed have been reported on all 3 of these gambling authority’s websites.

The UKGC and the MGA licenses are by far the strongest of the 3, while Curacao eGaming is under a newly revamped program that will see the small Dutch Caribbean island introduce a gambling centre specifically to monitor online casinos covered under the laws of Curacao.

MGA and Curacao licenses cover citizens in nations where there are no domestic licensing authorities organised by the government. Canada, New Zealand, India, the Republic of Ireland, and South Africa are all covered by MGA licensing and Curacao licensing. However, the MGA license does not cover Australian citizens due to an agreement with the Australian government, but the Curacao authority does not forbid live casinos under its licensing from accepting online casino players from down under.

Some of the fundamental problems that come up for these licensing authorities include casinos falsely claiming that they have a license, failure to sport problem gamblers, and neglecting financial obligations. Below we look at the reports each authority released so far in 2021 and give you the brief version of each one!

Playing at an online casino with a license helps to protect your money! Your bonus rights are preserved, games are always checked for fair results, and you have an authority that will back you up with free mediation services should you have a casino dispute thus helping the little guy take on the big guns!

UKGC 2021: Suspension of Licenses & Fines For Neglecting Problem Gamblers!

There are numerous cases whereby land-based and online casinos have been fined or had their license suspended because the UKGC rules are so strict.

£6 million fine: Probably the most notable of these was the £6 million fine dished out to the well-known online casino Casumo for its second offence. The casino failed to spot problem gamblers, unfortunately allowing these players to slip through the checking system. As it was the second instance, the casino had to pay a multi-million Sterling fine!

Suspended: Nektan is another piece of big news coming out of the UKGC camp. The licensing authority suspended the Nektan (Gibraltar) Ltd license, while the same company is also no longer listed on the London Stock Exchange after being booted out for financial misgivings.

Land-Base Fines: Multiple land-based casinos found themselves under the UKGC’s wrath for the same offences as Casumo casino. Clockfair Limited, Shaftesbury Casino Limited, Les Croupiers Casino Limited, Double Diamond Gaming Limited, and A&S Leisure Group Limited were all fined between £202,500 and £377,340 for failing to spot problem gamblers.

Caesars Entertainment: Caesars Entertainment UK Limited runs 11 land-based operations in the UK. Misconduct by some of the firm’s senior managers by incorrectly interacting with problem gamblers resulted in a £13m fine for the Personal Management Licence (PML) holders of the firm and resulted in several managers losing their personal license or having a warning.

BetIndex: In the sports betting sector, the BetIndex Limited case is big news. Somehow the UKGC appears to have allowed a huge Ponzi scheme to operate right under its nose. The case has resulted in the call for reform of the UKGC by some UK MPs. As of this time, the investigation continues in what looks to be a billion Sterling fraud!

In Touch Games: In Touch Games Limited is a reputable firm, but it still managed to pick up a £3.4m fine for social responsibility and anti-money laundering offences. It was also caught out for not placing fair and transparent terms on its casino sites by not officially declaring to members the min-max deposit or time limit of bonuses in the promo SMS texts sent – a small matter you may fee, but one the UKGC thankfully takes seriously!

As for UKGC licensing, this is the strictest of them all and covers UK players only. Keeping the license, avoiding fines, or both is a tough job with the extremely strict measure in place that pertains to money laundering, gambling addiction monitoring, and advertising. Plus, all casinos must also adhere to strict security measures under the 10-steps-to-cyber-security!

MGA 2021: Issues Statements Regarding False MGA Licensing Claims

As the MGA faces quite a few issues in regard to online casinos that claim the company has a licence from the authority. This is because the authority covers multiple countries across all continents, and as such some casinos will falsely slap the MGA licensing logo on their website to make the casino look more legitimate. As such, the MGA regularly produces news exposing these false claims.

April 2021: eubet8my.com is not an MGA licensed casino despite claiming to be. Furthermore, the MGA confirms that there is no connection between its authority and the Malta Gaming Certification Organisation (‘MGCO’) and Sky Royal Limited!

March 2021: mgacasino.co is a news outlet, but as the website’s name is so closely associated with the MGA, the authority must have received some inquiries as to whether there is a connection. Hence it issued a statement confirming that there is no connection!

February 2021: Over the course of February, the MGA issued multiple statements. Sites claiming to have an MGA license as follows; va-va-da.club, megabahis.com, epicwin.vip, epicwin2.com, and epicwinvip.club, were all denounced by the MGA, which firmly confirmed these sites are making false claims.

January 2021: At the beginning of the year, the MGA found multiple casinos falsely claiming they have an MGA license. These casinos were orangeplusbet.com, shahrebazi.club, and shahrshahr11.com.

For members of MGA licensed casinos, the laws of the EU apply. Even as a non-EU citizens, players’ consumer rights and privacy are protected. Should a player have a dispute with a casino that fall under the MGA’s jurisdiction and the casino does not appear to be solving the issue, players can file for mediation directly with the MGA’s casino complaints service – plus the entire process if free of charge!

Curacao eGaming: Multiple Notices of Suspension

In recent times the Curacao licensing authority has taken quite a lot of flak for being just a piece of paper, or an empty suit as some may describe it. The reason is that the authorities’ requirements to gain an online casino license are thin compared to the UKGC and MGA powerhouses of casino licensing. However, recently we have seen more from the licenser with multiple suspension coming over the course of 2021.

March 2021: Sorteo Libre B.V., which owns and operates www.sorteolibre.com and www.reyes.bet, has seen its license suspended, which is officially announced on the Curacao website.

February 2021: InterBT Club B.V., the owner and operator of www.interbet.club, and A&H Kingdom B.V., operating firm for www.w777.org have both had their licenses suspended.

January 2021: Holigan Vision B.V.’s has had its license suspended, which means the following online casino websites no longer operate under the Curacao eGaming licensing: www.fxjackpot.com, www.betoji.com, www.beonbet100.com, www.betrekabet.com , www.bybetco.com, www.betiran.com, www.galobet.com , www.novabetting.com, and www.general-casino.com.

As Curacao relied heavily on tourism, the island has turned to its ex-colonial leader, the Netherlands, for financial aid over the past year. The first package came with no questions asked, however, as the island requested further help, the Dutch government add the condition that the Curacao licensing authority acts more responsibly and takes a stronger approach in order to protect players playing at online casinos under its global online gambling licensing framework!

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