BGO Entertainment, the group behind their own BGO Casino as well as brands such as Power Spins and Vegas Luck, has had their UK licence suspended by the Gambling Commission.
A ‘failure to protect customers’ has been cited as one of the main reasons for the revocation, with the Commission confirming that a full review into the operator will now be carried out.
The regulator was keen to stress that BGO’s customers can still access their account and make a withdrawal of their funds should they wish, although the immediate nature of the suspension means that you won’t be able to play any of their games or use any bonuses allotted.
For reference, the full list of BGO brands is:
- Bgo.com
- Powerspins.com
- Vegasluck.com
- Chilli.com
- 7casino.com (non UK)
“We have made it clear to the operator that during the course of the suspension, we expect it to focus on treating consumers fairly and keeping them fully informed of any developments which impact them,”a statement on the Gambling Commission’s website reads.
“The review and consequent suspension follows concerns that activities may have been carried out contrary to the Act, not in accordance with conditions of their licence and that the Licensee may be unsuitable to carry on the licensed activities. Failing to protect consumers was a key consideration in the suspension decision.”
A History of Failures
Quite why BGO Entertainment has found it so hard to keep their metaphorical nose clean remains a mystery.
They first fell foul of the UKGC way back in September 2018, when a routine compliance assessment revealed a number of failings in how the group operated. That related to measures they had put in place for customers who were exhibiting problem gambling behaviours, as well as concerns over anti-money laundering practices.
Further investigation from the UKGC revealed that BGO customers were able to place six-figure bets without any background checks on their financial history, and that led to a considerable change to their licensing conditions.
In 2019, BGO agreed to put into place enhanced due diligence on their top 125 customers based on their deposit sizes, while the top 125 players who lost the most money were also to be monitored more closely as per the Commission’s orders. BGO agreed to the conditions, and also paid £2 million to be paid to help fund the work of the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms.
These new restrictions remained in place until this week, when the Commission pulled the plug on the firm’s activities, and the presumption is that they will now investigate potential breaches in social responsibility and anti-money laundering.
If you access any of their UK-facing sites, you will be greeted with the following message:
