Britain’s Gambling Commission has imposed a fine of £1 million on online gaming operator ProgressPlay for breaching market regulations.

The fine announced on Thursday (21 August) relates to anti-money laundering (AML) and social responsibility failings at the company, which operates 134 websites under its license from Britain’s Gambling Commission, of which 18 are active.

In addition to the fine, ProgressPlay has had conditions attached to its licence and must appoint a third-party auditor to ensure that it is effectively implementing anti-money laundering and social responsibility policies, procedures and controls.  

ProgressPlay was previously fined £175,718 for similar offences in 2022.

“Gambling businesses must have robust policies and procedures in place to protect consumers and ensure appropriate anti-money laundering controls are maintained. These measures must be actively implemented and regularly tested to confirm their effectiveness,” said John Pierce, director of enforcement and intelligence at the Gambling Commission.

“This case marks the second time ProgressPlay Limited has been subject to enforcement action by the Gambling Commission. Its failure to meet AML obligations, along with the gaps identified in its social responsibility processes, are unacceptable.”

ProgressPlay was found to have:

  • Breached paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Licence Condition 12.1.1 – Anti-money laundering – Prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing.
  • Breached Licence Condition 12.1.2 Anti-money laundering measures for operators based in foreign jurisdictions.
  • Failed to comply with paragraphs 1, 4, 9 & 12 of Social Responsibility Code Provision 3.4.3: Customer Interaction.  

Commission officials also found that ProgressPlay failed to adequately consider Ordinary Code Provision (“OCP”) 2.1.2 paragraph 1 and OCP 2.1.1 paragraph 1 – Anti-money laundering in its operations.

“Operators should be in no doubt: repeated regulatory breaches will result in increasingly severe enforcement action,” added Pierce. “We urge all operators to examine the failings identified in this case and take proactive steps to strengthen their own systems and controls.”

ProgressPlay chief executive Itai Lowenstein commented: “Our philosophy has always been that regulatory challenges present opportunities to raise the bar. Rather than simply remediating past findings, we’ve invested £1.5 million in player protection technology and better AML handling. This transformation goes far beyond compliance, it’s fundamentally changed how we understand and serve our customers.”