Gambling Commission warns operators over “robust” marketing data assessment
CEO Andrew Rhodes says work will be delivered with the Information Commissioner’s Office following Stake’s exit from the UK market
Gambling Commission CEO Andrew Rhodes has warned operators that the regulator and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)are teaming up for a “robust” assessment of marketing practices.
Speaking at the Betting and Gaming Council’s (BGC) AGM last week, Rhodes’ wide-ranging speech included an update on the Gambling Commission and ICO’s joint efforts.
His comments came as he made reference to Stake’s confirmed exit from the UK following a Gambling Commission investigation.
Stake, which had operated via a TGP Europe white-label deal, is in the process of shutting down UK-facing operations, with a closure date of 11 March having been announced.
The investigation came after Stake’s logo featured on a widely shared and viewed video featuring an OnlyFans star outside Nottingham Trent University.
Rhodes said further investigation into marketing practices in the UK are now in the offing.
He continued: “Now on advertising and marketing, we have had a lot of correspondence, especially regarding actions we have taken around Stake and their sponsorship arrangements, as well as the actions against TGP Europe’s white-label provisions as well.
“There will be joint work with the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Commission on data use for marketing.
“The ICO are already reviewing the top 1,000 sites in terms of traffic, some of which I am sure will belong to people in this room, and I strongly encourage you to review your operations and practices because that assessment is coming, and it will be robust.”
Another key point of Rhodes’ speech centred around the ongoing debate surrounding affordability checks in the UK.
He said operators incorrectly citing affordability checks in customer communications “undermines the system of regulation” in the UK.
The CEO confirmed the regulator is already in the process of writing to licensed entities, both “directly and generally” about customer communication.
Rhodes added: “We have seen a number of cases where technical issues or security concerns have occurred but customers are being told that this is as a result of Gambling Commission-mandated affordability checks when it isn’t.
“This is not helpful. This needs to stop because it undermines the system of regulation and it is why we will see stories in the media about people saying, ‘I’m a £10 punter, why have I had an affordability check?’.
“I cannot understand why they have either, and what we are finding is some of this is down to the way consumers are having things explained to them. We have got to tighten this up as it’s just going to continue to be unhelpful.”
Rhodes’ plea comes as “light touch” financial risk checks had the threshold for intervention dropped to a £150 net deposit on 28 February.
The threshold had previously been a £500 net deposit per month from August 2024.
Finally, the regulator’s chief also announced the Gambling Commission’s report into the UK black market is due to be published in the summer.