The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has reached a regulatory settlement with Lindar Media Limited, the operator of Mr Q and MrQ.com, regarding failures related to social responsibility and anti-money laundering (AML) within its online gambling operations.
As part of the settlement, Lindar Media will pay £690,947 ($853,759/€798,570), following an investigation by the UKGC. The investigation revealed several shortcomings at the company, including:
Inadequate AML Measures: The company had insufficient implementation of AML policies, procedures, and controls.
Responsible Gambling Issues: Deficiencies in responsible gambling policies, procedures, controls, and practices were found.
Reporting Failures: Inadequate reporting for significant events was noted.
Management Approval: The Head of Regulatory Compliance held other management positions without the Commission's approval.
Marketing Practices: Failure to conduct marketing in a socially responsible manner.
Lack of Contribution: The company did not make an annual contribution to support research, prevention, and treatment for individuals affected by gambling harm.
Examples of breaches included automatically assigning all customers as low-risk for money laundering without proper profiling and allowing multiple customers to deposit and lose £10,000 ($12,356/€11,556) in a short period without intervention.
Additionally, the Commission found that Lindar ran ads on two occasions that could appeal to minors. One ad featured Spiderman cartoon figures, and the other included cartoon imagery related to various games. In both instances, the Commission determined that the license holder had failed to market its products responsibly.
The UKGC's actions are part of a broader trend of increased regulatory oversight in the gambling industry, with global regulators imposing fines and penalties totaling £311,713,335 ($385,358,776/€360,378,609) in 2023 alone.
According to the latest UK gambling statistics, the 16-24 age group has the highest prevalence of problem gambling, with 1% of individuals in this age category reporting gambling-related issues.
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