Gambling Commission Weighed Licence Suspension for Evolution Before Settlement

The UK Gambling Commission (GC) has disclosed that it actively considered suspending Evolution's licence after an investigation revealed the supplier’s games had been accessible through six unlicensed websites targeting British players. The probe concluded with Evolution agreeing to a £4.75m settlement, announced last week by the company.

According to the GC’s follow-up statement, the supplier’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing assessment was deemed insufficiently robust to detect two operators that were offering Evolution content without a GC licence. The watchdog noted a significant volume of visits from UK consumers to those six unlicensed sites between December 2023 and November 2024.

Breaches and Regulatory Response

The commission identified three specific regulatory breaches by Evolution: failing to properly assess money-laundering and terrorist-financing risks, not implementing effective controls to prevent its games from reaching unlicensed operators in the British market, and non-compliance with customer due diligence requirements.

John Pierce, GC Director of Enforcement, stated: “This case exposed serious weaknesses in Evolution’s anti-money laundering risk assessment and its oversight of risks within its supply chain.” He added that the company’s risk assessment was outdated and did not adequately consider the risk of content being distributed through unlicensed channels.

The GC said the failings were severe enough to warrant a possible licence suspension. However, Evolution took immediate corrective steps and strengthened its controls, and subsequent testing revealed no further issues.

Industry Warning and Evolution’s Response

Pierce emphasised that operators must keep their risk assessments current and effective, warning: “We will continue to proactively monitor and test the market to identify licensed products being made available through illegal operators targeting consumers in Great Britain.” He stressed that decisive regulatory action would follow any similar failings.

Evolution confirmed it fully cooperated with the GC review and has since enhanced its technical measures, including improved ring-fencing. CEO Martin Carlesund commented: “We do not want traffic from unlicensed operators and will always move quickly to address any such situation.” The company reiterated its commitment to compliance investment and constructive regulator collaboration.