Apollo Entertainment slapped with C$100,000 Ontario penalty over failure to meet RG standards
Penalty relates to multiple alleged violations of the responsible gambling laws, including failing to implement a voluntary self-exclusion program
Apollo Entertainment has been hit with a C$100,000 ($74,395) penalty from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) for violating the province’s responsible gambling laws.
The Malta-based firm, which operates a number of online casinos including Captain Cooks Casino, Luxury Casino and Zodiac Casino, received the penalty after the regulator uncovered a number of responsible gambling failures.
Apollo failed to conduct the required interventions with players who may be experiencing gambling-related harms. This included the case of a player experiencing over C$2m in losses in a four-month period without receiving any interventions from the operator.
The firm also failed to implement an adequate self-exclusion program and provide enough tools to players to help them set financial and time-based limits on their gambling.
Lastly, Apollo failed to ensure its staff understood the importance of responsible gambling, including assisting players who may be experiencing gambling-related harms.
Following its findings, the regulator did say that Apollo has already taken significant steps to strengthen its control environment on its sites to address the shortcomings raised by the AGCO.
Tom Mungham, CEO and registrar at AGCO, commented: “The AGCO’s goal is to ensure Ontarians can enjoy online gambling on sites that operate fairly, responsibly, and provide important player protections. All registered operators have an obligation to proactively monitor patron play for signs of high-risk gambling, and must take appropriate actions to intervene and reduce the potential for gambling-related harm.”
Elsewhere, AGCO appointed chief superintendent Craig Abrams as bureau commander of the Investigation and Enforcement Bureau (IEB).
Abrams will begin his new role on August 21, 2023, replacing the outgoing chief superintendent Alison Jevons who announced her retirement earlier this summer after almost 30 years with the Ontario Provincial Police. Jevons joined the IEB in August 2020 and, during her time in the role, helped both the IEB and AGCO through the pandemic, including guiding the police’s involvement in all of AGCO’s lines of business.