UK Gambling Commission Launches Review into Evolution
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has initiated a review into the operating licence of Evolution Malta Limited under Section 116 of the Gambling Act 2005. The review follows concerns that Evolution games were “being accessible from the UK through operators not holding a Commission license.”
Scope and Potential Outcomes of the Review
The UKGC review could lead to a variety of outcomes, including no action, imposing conditions on the licence, financial penalties, suspension, or even revocation of Evolution’s licence to operate in the UK. Evolution has acknowledged the review and stated its commitment to addressing the regulator’s concerns.
“Evolution is cooperating fully with the Commission and has taken requested immediate actions to remedy the situation. Games on the identified websites not holding a Commission license have been made unavailable from the UK. Evolution continues to actively work with the Commission to resolve this matter”, the company noted in its statement.
Evolution’s Commitment to Compliance
Martin Carlesund, CEO of Evolution, emphasized the company’s dedication to supporting the regulated UK market, which contributes around 3% of its overall revenue.
“Evolution embraces the objectives of the review by the Commission. We are committed to support the licensed UK market as well as preventing unlicensed traffic. We are now taking forceful action using all technical tools available to us to ensure that our games only are available in the UK through Commission licensed operators. We believe that a close collaboration to address our joint concerns will lead to swifter and better results. As always, we remain committed to an open and transparent relationship with our regulators”, said Carlesund.
Regulatory Focus on Unlicensed Activity
The UKGC’s decision to review Evolution’s licence aligns with recent remarks by its CEO, Andrew Rhodes, at the annual CEO Briefing. Rhodes urged operators to perform due diligence on suppliers to prevent unlicensed activity.
“I’m going to go one step further than that today and strongly suggest you all undertake due diligence to ensure none of your suppliers are directly or indirectly engaged in supporting unlicensed activity in this market. The Commission’s strategy on combatting illegal gambling is to cause as much up-stream disruption as we can, which is why we have focussed on ISPs, payment providers, search engines, software suppliers and more”, Rhodes stated.
