The UK Treasury and Home Office have conducted their 2025 National Risk Assessment of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing. In the 163-page report, it’s found some things were found regarding how legal practices seem to be a hot spot for money laundering, as well as raising the risk level from low to medium in the casino and gambling sector.
The gambling industry has multiple entry points for money laundering in particular. Whether through machines’ cash out options being taken advantage of or backroom poker games, it’s become prevalent enough that the UK government has seen fit to raise some alarms about it.
There is also illegal offshore gambling, which, as of September 2024, was reported to be earning well over £4 billion ($5.4 billion). On top of this, remote platforms licensed by the UK Gambling Commission have also been highlighted as potential entry points for money laundering activity.
As various platforms begin to integrate options like cryptocurrency and new methods of payment, the complex nature of the technology can leave some operators vulnerable.
🗣️ "The risk assessment is an important publication, which gives an up-to-date picture on the evolving money laundering threat faced by the UK.
Our response to the publication of a new National Money Laundering Risk Assessment ⤵️https://t.co/pIZMlYOwJe
— Transparency International UK (@TransparencyUK) July 17, 2025
There’s been a 26% rise in suspicious activity reports according to the government. Thanks to advances in technologies like virtual private networks (VPNs), which allow users to effectively change their location by connecting through services, adding wrinkles to tracking down bad actors.
Among these, regular casinos providing money service businesses, like currency exchange, have been flagged as a particular weak point.
UK government is strict, but casinos are ignoring them
The UK, including its self-governing islands, has strict rules for ensuring compliance and due diligence is undertaken. Recently, the Isle of Man stripped the license from one casino, forcing it to shutter entirely. However, the UK government is now reporting that these casinos aren’t doing enough, with 41% not applying enhanced due diligence (EDD) properly.
In the report, it also points out different methods being taken for money laundering activity. One in particular, crash games, where players will log in or deposit large sums of cash and immediately cash out, turning potentially dirty cash into clean usable cash, are a rising issue.
Featured image: Wikicommons
