The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC) has hit SBOTOP parent company Celton Manx with a £3.9m fine for deficiencies in its anti-money laundering (AML) practices.
The regulator determined that Celton Manx failed to provide evidence of having proper risk assessment structures in place, likewise customer monitoring and sufficient ID verification processes.
The investigation found multiple breaches of section 19 of the island’s Gambling (Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism) Act 2018, though Celton Manx has since informed the GSC that its own inspections did not find any instances of money laundering.
Initially, the GSC’s fine was set at £5.6m, but the penalty fee was reduced after the authority considered the cooperation from senior figures at Celton Manx who worked collaboratively with the AML investigation to ensure the swiftest possible conclusion.
A statement from the GSC read: “The Commission is satisfied that the imposition of the civil penalty on Celton Manx reflects the serious nature of the identified non-compliance and the issues and risks identified.
“It was further noted that Celton Manx acknowledged the serious shortcomings in its operational and governance arrangements at an early stage of the Commission’s investigation and thereupon had entered into settlement discussions with the Commission and sought to resolve matters expeditiously.”
This latest update comes after a turbulent few months for Celton Manx, which voluntarily surrendered its Isle of Man licence in May, 17 years after it was first granted it by the GSC.
Around the same time, TGP Europe, which operated SBOTOP in the UK via a white-label agreement alongside Celton Manx, ceased all UK operations, impacting as many as 15 operators in the process.
SBOTOP has not been the only operator to feel the wrath of the GSC’s punishment recently, with SK IOM also handed a £70,000 fine for breaching section 19 of the Isle of Man’s Gambling Act.
Headquartered in Douglas and overseeing the BetInvite brand, which ceased taking any bets as of 2 July, SK IOM was determined to have failed to ensure those entrusted to take charge of its AML and counter-financial terrorism (CFT) practices had the “seniority, expertise, competency or sufficient time and resources” to support these responsibilities.
Additionally, SK IOM also failed to demonstrate effective monitoring and testing of its AML/CFT compliance but, like Celton Manx, saw its penalty reduced by 30% after cooperating with the GSC.
In other Isle of Man news, the regulator recently revealed that it has an “extremely limited appetite” to grant licences to high-risk operators with links to East or Southeast Asia amid concerns of ties to criminal organisations.
The policy document was published in “response to emerging risks presented by an increasingly complex criminal landscape in East and Southeast Asia”, according to the island’s government.
The post SBOTOP parent company handed £3.9m fine by Isle of Man regulator first appeared on EGR Intel.
Celton Manx sees original penalty fee reduced by 30% after senior figures cooperated with the Gambling Supervision Commission’s investigation
The post SBOTOP parent company handed £3.9m fine by Isle of Man regulator first appeared on EGR Intel.