Industry reaction to InTouch Games’ licence suspension

The Gambling Commission (GC) delivered a fourth regulatory blow to InTouch Games in as many years after suspending the multi-brand firm’s licence as part of a review into the business earlier this week.

InTouch Games will be subject to a review under section 116 of the Gambling Act 2005, with the GC noting it suspected the firm of failing to comply with its licence conditions.

These conditions relate to “money laundering, fair and transparent terms and practices and reporting key events.”

The suspension, and subsequent review into anti-money laundering (AML) failings, follows a similar theme to InTouch Games’ previous run-ins with the regulator.

In January, the firm was slapped with a £6.1m fine for AML and social responsibility failings. Two years ago, the group was handed a £3.4m penalty for similar reasons.

InTouch Games also agreed a £2.2m settlement in 2019 over the same failings.

The GC said: “We have made it clear to the operator that during the course of the suspension we expect it to focus on treating consumers fairly and keeping them fully informed of any developments which impact them.”

InTouch Games’ sites are currently shuttered as the review progresses. Here, EGR details industry reaction to the latest regulatory action from the GC.

Nick Arron, lead partner in the gambling team at Poppleston Allen:

“Given the number of record-breaking fines handed out to gambling operators over the past year, some have questioned what it would take for the Gambling Commission to suspend or revoke an operator’s licence.

“The suspension of InTouch Games’ operating licence shows the regulator isn’t afraid to take drastic action where it feels it is warranted and where there have been repeated failings related to the same issues. 

“While we have seen cases in the past where operators have received multiple fines and this has led some to ask why their licence hasn’t been suspended, it’s often the case that the failings are related to different licence conditions. 

“InTouch Games has been subject to financial settlements on three separate occasions, most recently in January, with all of the announcements related to these noting money laundering failings.

“The Gambling Commission noted in its announcement of the suspension that it suspected the operator had failed to follow licence conditions in relation to money laundering, thus with three previous failings in this area, the Commission’s decision to suspend its licence seems inevitable.”

Matt Zarb-Cousin, director of Clean Up Gambling:

“Many of these brands have been promoted in commercial partnerships with Premier League football clubs.

“Something is going badly wrong if operators of this profile are getting sanctioned repeatedly, with no improvements in compliance, meaning the licence objectives aren’t being upheld.

“In this context, the Gambling Commission should consider introducing a ‘three strikes and out’ policy where licences are revoked for repeat offences.”

David Sproson, head of safer gambling at EPIC Risk Management [via LinkedIn]:

“It is genuinely never good to see an operator have their licence suspended. I see a number of people talking like licences being suspended is a good thing, and in the short term they may be right, in as much as preventing further harm.

“But when you look at things holistically, this doesn’t help those already harmed nor does it improve the gambling industry in any way. People that were harmed are still out there potentially gambling with other operators and furthering their own harm.

“Instead of celebrating the loss of a licence we should be learning from mistakes made, and as a collaborative industry focus on levelling up our safer gambling initiatives and processes.

“The last 12 months have seen record numbers of regulatory settlements, this, combined with the eventual release of the white paper and more recently an update on the customer interaction guidance, means that having truly effective customer interactions is paramount to both your consumers and the survivability and sustainability of your business.”