UKGC Fines Greentube Alderney
The Gambling Commission has taken action against Greentube Alderney, after it uncovered a series of regulatory failures. The online gambling operator has been ordered to pay a fine of £685,000 over shortcomings in its social responsibility and money laundering procedures. The online operator, which runs Admiral Casino and Bell Fruit Casino, will also be subject to an extensive independent audit.
The fine will be directed to the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms. ©Ekaterina Bolovtsova/Pexels
Safeguarding Failures
Greentube Alderney is the latest online gambling operator to be penalized by the UK’s gambling authority. The Gambling Commission regulates the industry to protect children and vulnerable people from harm, and to ensure that gambling is fair and crime-free. It is responsible for issuing gambling firms with the necessary operating licenses and ensuring that they are in compliance with the 2005 Gambling Act.
Now the Gambling Commission has revealed that an investigation uncovered serious failures at Greentube Alderney. The issues, which occurred between December 2019 and November 2020, were to do with the operator’s social responsibility and money laundering procedures. Commenting on the failures, the Gambling Commission’s Executive Director Helen Venn said:
“Compliance with Commission rules aimed at keeping people safe and gambling crime free is not optional. We will always take firm action against those operators who fail to meet the high standards we expect for consumers in Britain.”
According to the Commission’s investigation, Greentube Alderney failed to carry out adequate assessments of the risk of money laundering. The investigation noted an incident in which the operator failed to carry out adequate wealth checks on a politically exposed person, allowing them to gamble up to a £1,000 deposit limit without any oversight.
The operator failed to interact effectively in terms of minimizing the risk of customers experiencing gambling harms. The regulator found that Greentube did not have in place or implement proper policies, procedures and controls to prevent money laundering.
On top of these shortcomings, the investigation found that Greentube Alderney did not alert the Gambling Commission to an event that could have had a significant impact on the nature of its license. The operator failed to submit six suspicious activity reports to the National Crime Agency.
Greentube Responds
The Gambling Commission has decided not to revoke the operator’s license altogether, but it has taken action. Greentube Alderney has been instructed to pay a fine of £685,000 and to make improvements. The payment, which is in lieu of a financial penalty, will be directed to the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms.
The three-year strategy aims to reduce harms associated with gambling, such as debt, crime and mental health issues, by taking a public health approach. Independent charity GambleAware, which recently awarded a £250,000 research grant, helps to deliver the strategy.
The operator must also pay a sum of £8,789.86 to cover the cost of the investigation. Greentube Alderney has agreed to the publication of a statement detailing its failures, and will be subject to a third-party audit to check on its practices within twelve months.
Greentube Alderney has since responded to the investigation, taking responsibility for the failures that were detailed by the Gambling Commission. It agreed that that its policies were not effectively provisioned to monitor money laundering risks out of hours. It also accepted that its record-keeping processes had been inadequate and that it had not always been able to offer clear evidence of an audit trail.
The operator admitted that, as the investigation had found, it did not carry out source of funds checks immediately after identifying a politically exposed person. Instead, it only carried out the checks after that person had hit a £1,000 deposit threshold, which was in breach of regulations.
Greentube Alderney is best known in the UK as the operator behind admiralcasino.co.uk and bellfruitcasino.com. Both brands offer a range of online slots, arcade games, table games, and live casino offerings. As the operator is based in Alderney, it holds a remote gambling license to offer its services in the UK.
New Markets
As well as offering casino fans content via its online brands, Greentube also works to produce fresh and innovative games through its NOVOMATIC Interactive Division. It recently unveiled a number of new games for its customers to enjoy over the festive period.
“Wild Lines: American Eagle” is the latest installment in its Reel Reveal series and features a patriotic Wheel of Freedom. “Diamond Link – Mighty Santa” employs more of a Christmassy theme and is now available to all of Greentube’s B2B partners. Triggering the Diamond Link feature offers players the chance to win one of four jackpots.
Despite the findings of the UK gambling authority’s investigation, Greentube has had a successful year. Last month, the international gambling firm opted to strengthen its presence in the Italian gaming market, acquiring Capecod Solutions. The Italian developer has been part of NOVOMATIC Italia since 2017.
Its acquisition will boost Greentube’s Italian game portfolio and provides the first aggregator pole in its online offering. By integrating its products, Greentube hopes to grow its portfolio and widen its geographic reach. The deal will also enhance Capecod’s performance by offering its titles in new markets. Announcing the deal, CFO and CGO at Greentube, Michael Bauer said:
“We have seen over the last few years how successful Capecod has been in developing games that resonate with players in Italy and in bringing the expertise of such a well-regarded company under the Greentube umbrella, we envisage all parties going from strength to strength in offering products to the widest audience.”
Last year, Greentube entered a partnership with German operator Novoline. The agreement has helped it to establish its position in the German gaming market and offer its content to more players than ever. Online gambling was legalized in Germany earlier this year, although the market is still navigating complex legislation issues.
