William Hill fined record $23.7M for social responsibility, AML failures
By 
Jeff Dale2023-03-29T18:13:00
The U.K. Gambling Commission announced Tuesday three units of British bookmaking service William Hill Group will pay a record fine of 19.2 million pounds (U.S. $23.7 million) for failures regarding social responsibility and anti-money laundering (AML).
WHG (International) Limited will pay £12.5 million (U.S. $15.4 million), Mr. Green Limited will pay £3.7 million (U.S. $4.6 million), and William Hill Organization Limited will pay £3 million (U.S. $3.7 million). William Hill Group, which was acquired by 888 Holdings in July, operates more than 1,000 gambling premises across the United Kingdom.
Andrew Rhodes, U.K. Gambling Commission chief executive, said the company’s failings “were so widespread and alarming, serious consideration was given to license suspension.” However, since the company recognized its shortcomings and worked with the commission to implement improvements, it was not suspended and instead subjected to the largest enforcement action in the regulator’s history, said Rhodes.
THIS IS MEMBERS-ONLY CONTENT
You are not logged in and do not have access to members-only content.
If you are already a registered user or a member, SIGN IN now.
Related articles
-
ArticleFormer U.K. Gambling Commission investigator on AML/CFT regulations
Recent events have put a spotlight on the role of the U.K. Gambling Commission, following its investigation into privileged information allegedly being used to bet on the date of the U.K. general election.
-
News BriefReport: FCA probing Barclays over AML controls
Barclays Bank is reportedly being investigated by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority for failures regarding its anti-money laundering procedures and controls.
-
News BriefIn Touch Games fined $7.6M for AML failures by U.K. Gambling Commission
U.K. online gaming company In Touch Games was fined £6.1 million (U.S. $7.6 million) by the country’s Gambling Commission for a series of anti-money laundering failures—its third such penalty since 2019.
More from Regulatory Enforcement
-
News BriefFTC orders GoDaddy to upgrade cybersecurity defenses following three breaches
The Federal Trade Commission has ordered web hosting company GoDaddy to implement a “robust” information security program following at least three data breaches that the agency said were aided by lax cybersecurity measures.
-
News BriefFTC shuts down student loan firms over deceptive debt relief practices
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) took action against a pair of student loan debt relief companies for allegedly deceiving borrowers. The move came despite the Trump administration’s broader efforts to roll back enforcement actions against businesses since taking office.
-
News BriefCoinbase faces a leftover SEC probe as crypto enforcement loses steam
After dismissing its lawsuit against the crypto exchange Coinbase in March, a second investigation into the exchange by the Securities and Exchange Commission has surfaced, according to a report from the New York Times. This comes as a bit of a surprise after the Trump administration has been scaling down ...