Genesis Global initially had its licensed suspended in July 2020 while the Commission carried out a review of the operator’s activities in relation to potential breaches of section 116(2)(a) and section 116(2)(c)(i)) of the Gambling Act.
Section 116(2)(a) permits a licence review if there are concerns an operator’s activities are not in line with its licence, while 116(2)(c)(i)) allows a review if the regulator suspects that the licensee “may be unsuitable to carry on the licensed activities”.
Genesis Global filed an appeal against the suspension and, after demonstrating compliance improvements, the suspension was lifted in October 2020. However, the Commission said it would continue its review into Genesis Global and its licence.
These enquiries, the Commission said, uncovered further failing across the business, citing a series of breaches of the operator’s licensing conditions.
Specific breaches included paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of licence condition 12.1.1 – dealing with anti-money laundering, which is related to the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing. The Commission also identified a breach of licence condition 12.1.2, which cover anti-money laundering measures for operators based in foreign jurisdictions.
Other breaches included failure to comply with social responsibility code of practice (SRCP) 3.4.1 in terms of customer Interaction, as well as a failure to comply with SRCP 3.9.1, which related to the Identification of individual customers
In addition, the Commission said Genesis Global failed to act in accordance with ordinary code provision 2.1.1 in relation to anti-money laundering.
Going into further detail on the charges, the Commission set out some of the failings that it identified.
In terms of social responsibility, the Commission said that the operator did not carry out meaningful responsible gambling interactions with, or place any effective restrictions on the account of, a customer who spent £245,000 in three months. This was despite Genesis Global knowing three days into the relationship that the customer was an NHS nurse earning £30,000 a year
Genesis Global was also found to have not taken any “meaningful responsible gambling interactions” or establish the affordability of a customer who lost £197,000 over six months. On the same day the customer closed her account, stating she wanted to spend more time with her family, she was allowed to open another account and deposit £200.
Another social responsibility failing was identified when Genesis Global failed to carry out meaningful responsible gambling interactions or establish the affordability of a customer who lost £234,000 in a six-week period.
The Commission also highlighted a number of money laundering failures, the first of which was Genesis Global only requested source of funds only after a customer had lost £209,000. Prior to this, the operator estimated the customer was earning £111,000 a year because the player had told the operator they were a director and this was the average salary of directors in London.
The regulator said the operator failed to take into account the company was dormant and that there would be a wide range of director salaries. It also found Genesis Global failed to verify information supplied by the customer to substantiate the level of spend.
Another failing came when a customer was allowed to deposit over £1,300,000 and lose £600,000 before the operator carried out sufficient source of funds checks. The customer in question provided Genesis Global with documents, including a bank statement, which showed deposits into the account to the value of £23,000 and payments out to the value of £27,000, which the Commission said was clearly not enough to support the level of gambling.
The regulator also noted a further money laundering failing in that a customer was able to lose £107,000 over six months without Genesis Global carrying out sufficient source of funds checks.
The Commission said Genesis Global relied on assertion that the customer’s money came from an allowance from parents who owned factories overseas and failed to verify this information. The customer did provide a number of bank statements, though these did not evidence any source of income, but did show transactions with other gambling operators.
Ruling on the case, the Commission imposed a financial penalty of £3.8m under section 121 of the Gambling Act 2005 and also issued a warning to Genesis Global, in accordance with section 117(1)(a) of the Act.
The Commission also suspended the operator’s licence and attached additional conditions to its licence – the details of which were not disclosed – under section 117(1)(b) of the Act.
“All gambling businesses should pay very close attention to this case,” the Commission’s executive director Helen Venn said. “The Commission will use all tools at its disposal to ensure consumer safety and that extends to stopping a business from actually operating.
“Failing to follow rules aimed at keeping gambling safe and crime-free will never be a viable business option for gambling businesses in Britain.”
Prior to suspension, Genesis Global had been operating 17 different websites in Britain, including Genesiscasino.com, Casinoplanet.com, Sloty.com and Funbet.com.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/genesis-globals-gb-licence-suspended-again-after-affordability-failings/
