The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission has issued an order banning Phua Cheng Wan, the owner of Boldwood Software, from any involvement with the regulated gambling sector for the foreseeable future.
Boldwood Software, an iGaming solutions provider, was licensed in the Isle of Man between November 2022 and May 2025. However, it surrendered its licence after being served with a Notice and an Enforcement Report by the commission.
The company claims on its website to have “over six decades of expertise in all things iGaming”. The company provided an iGaming platform solution which integrated thousands of casino games over 500,000 live betting events a year. It also offered esports and virtual betting offerings via its platform.
The notice said the commission was to meet early in June 2025 to consider cancelling the provider’s licence. This stemmed from an investigation into Phua’s integrity to determine whether he was a “fit and proper” person.
The commission-led investigation identified certain open-source materials suggesting Phua was associated with “bad actors”. Section 4(2) of the Online Gambling Regulation Act 2001 (OGRA) requires licence-holders to be “under the control of a person or persons of integrity”.
The commission said in a statement it has a regulatory objective under the Gambling Supervision Act 2010 to prevent gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, associated with crime or disorder, or used to support crime.
Evidence of ‘criminal association’ or Boldwood owner
While the commission acknowledged Phua had not been convicted of an offence, there was evidence of “association with criminal elements”. As such, he has been prohibited from performing any role or functions within the Isle of Man regulated gambling sector.
“The prohibition will remain in place indefinitely until such time as Mr Phua successfully applies to the Commission to have it varied or revoked,” the regulator said.
“Mr Phua’s acknowledgment of the facts and engagement with the Commission has allowed the Commission to conclude this matter sooner than might otherwise have been the case.”
The order comes after the commission in July also issued a heavy penalty to Celton Manx. The online gambling product provider was ruled to have breached anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing rules. It must now pay £3.9 million ($5.3 million).
Regulator cites “association with criminal elements” as reason behind the Boldwood Software owner’s ban from gambling activities on the island.