TGP Europe Ltd Surrenders UK License!

TGP Europe, which operated 30 white label sportsbooks and casino sites in the UK, surrendered its licence after being fined £3.3 million by the UK Gambling Commission and told to make a raft of improvements. Rather than taking the hit and improving, they have decided to leave the UK market.

The fine was for failing to carry out sufficient checks on business partners and breaching anti-money laundering rules.

TGP’s white label business model involved running a gambling business using the branding of other businesses.

A Commission investigation revealed failures to:

• carry out effective due diligence on each entity involved in the ownership of the third party
• carry out due diligence on the source of funds for business arrangements
• sufficiently consider money laundering risks
• sufficiently consider any activity by a third-party that is illegal, in either GB or the territory in which it is conducted.

With this action, the Group's sites are now classed as unlicensed, which not only affects UK players but also has a knock-on effect for five English Football Clubs sponsored by these sites, as it is illegal to promote unlicensed gambling sites.

Customers

For any player who was a member of the above-listed sites, the operator will contact you about its closure of your account and withdrawal of funds, as dictated by the rules here. 

Using an unlicensed sportsbook or casino means players are not subject to the legal protections offered by licensed operators regarding criminal activity or gambling-related harm.

Make sure you check out junk emails for further details, if you are a member of one of the now unlicensed sites.

Sponsorships

Five English football clubs have now been forced to remove all material relating to the now unlicensed sites or face potential legal implications:

• AFC Bournemouth (sponsored by BJ88)
• Burnley (sponsored by 96.com)
• Fulham (sponsored by SBOTOP)
• Newcastle United (sponsored by Sportsbet.io and FUN88)
• Wolverhampton Wanderers (sponsored by DEBET)

The commission's Head of Enforcement, John Pierce:

"We have already been in contact with several football clubs today to highlight the impact of the withdrawal from the market by TGP and make clear that we will be carrying out checks, without further notice, to ensure these sites remain blocked. We will also conduct ongoing spot checks to ensure they are not accessible to consumers in Great Britain by any means. Should any of these sites be available to GB consumers, we will take appropriate action"