Spooniker has been fined SEK10 million ($1.03m) by Spelinspektionen, the Swedish regulator, over a failure to respond to previously notified AML failures.
The online gaming operator is responsible for several casino and betting sites in Sweden, with a follow-up probe from the regulator finding that it had not “achieved sufficient customer due diligence” to be able to assess the risk of money laundering with the absence of identification for the exact source of funds.
This leaves the channel open to potential exploitation from bad actors, as indicated in a statement from the regulator.
It added, “They have not been able to determine whether the customers’ activities were legitimate or whether they posed a risk of money laundering or terrorist financing.”
The former Kindred Group subsidiary, now part of the extensive FDJ Group stable of brands following the latter’s acquisition of the former, is the operator of online titles including unibet.se, bingo.se, ottocasino.se, and mariabingo.se.
Review highlighted ongoing issues
The initial Spelinspektionen report detailed in November 2022 that Spooniker had “shortcomings” within its money laundering and terrorist financing prevention measures, with a SEK 10.9m ($1.1m) levied.
The regulator then requested information on five customers who signed up between May 2023 and April 2024, with further disclosure to be provided on Spooniker’s risk assessment system and customer monitoring guidelines.
Upon review, the company’s system had flagged issues with several accounts, including high deposit amounts and gaming patterns.
Ultimately, Spooniker did not undertake additional measures “despite the fact” certain deposits maxed out or exceeded the entire taxable annual income of account holders.
The regulator detailed that stringent due diligence should have been conducted, while the paper trail was also found to be inadequate.
Spelinspektionen acknowledged the operator had made improvements to its systems including the introduction of a continuous monitoring system and monthly loss limits, while Spooniker insisted there had been no additional money laundering concerns from players under review.
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