Entain-owned BetCity has been hit with a €3m fine by the Dutch Gambling Authority for anti-money laundering and terrorist financing failures.
Kansspelautoriteit said its survey of BetEnt, which operates BetCity in the Netherlands, found that the operator’s customer due diligence investigations were often “only started late.”
The probe, carried out by the KSA between December 2022 and May 2023, also found that BetEnt was “lax in requesting sources of income from customers” and that “adequate action was not always taken.”
The regulator said BetEnt also failed to report a host of “unusual transactions” to the Dutch Financial Intelligence Unit, a requirement set out in the Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing (Prevention) Act (WWFT).
In a statement, Entain accepted the KSA’s explanation of the failings. The KSA said that in September 2022 it instructed BetEnt on “how to properly conduct” and report on its customer due diligence before starting the follow-up investigation which led to the failings being exposed and the fine.
Entain said it has “fully co-operated with the KSA investigation and is committed to working with regulators in all its markets to ensure the highest standards of player protection.”
However, KSA chairman René Jansen said there are “no more excuses for some things” after the regulator’s “broad warning” in May last year that operators “had to get their WWFT affairs in order.”
He added: “We then indicated that if research shows that providers are underperforming in the field of the WWFT, sanctions will be imposed. We are now following up on this.
Tough spell for Entain
The BetCity regulatory action caps off a tough week for Entain in which it has also agreed a £585m regulatory settlement with the UK tax authorities over failings with its legacy Turkish business.
Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs downgraded Entain from buy to sell and said it has concerns over its standing in the market, as reported by Yogonet.
And the Financial Times reports that activist investors are piling the pressure on Entain.
On Monday, Entain will once again be in the spotlight when BetMGM, which it jointly owns alongside MGM Resorts International, provides a business update.
