In September 2024, Wynn Las Vegas agreed to surrender $130 million to the US Department of Justice after admitting it had “conspired with unlicensed money transmitting businesses that moved millions of dollars in illicit funds through the casino.”   At the time, the public was given only a broad outline of the violations, with little detail about the mechanics of the underground transfers, the role of casino staff, or how drug cartel proceeds ultimately ended up funding high-

A disciplinary case stemming from the actions of illegal bookmaker Mathew Bowyer inside Caesars Palace has escalated into one of the Strip’s most consequential financial-crime matters in recent memory. A proposed settlement between Caesars Entertainment, Inc. and Nevada regulators details a mixture of penalties, operational restrictions, and corrective measures aimed squarely at the casino’s failures to detect and prevent money-laundering activity connected to high-risk betti

Macau’s Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai has cautioned that the city’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) is continuing to lag behind expectations and is unlikely to hit government projections by year-end, underscoring the sector’s fragility in the face of shifting international forces. Speaking at a press conference after presenting his 2026 Policy Address on Tuesday, Hou Fai admitted, “Until now, GGR has not matched our expectations, and we don’t believe it will do so by November or Dec

The South African Bookmakers’ Association (SABA) has issued a detailed clarification in response to the Supreme Court of Appeal’s recent ruling in the matter of Portapa (Pty) Limited, trading as Supabets, versus the Casino Association of South Africa.   The judgment, which also involved the Gauteng Gambling Board, was handed down on 21 October 2025 and has since generated extensive media coverage and public debate. SABA also noted its awareness of the National Gambling Board’

Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) has revised its Multi-year Investment Plan for 2025–2027, allocating €28 million specifically toward the digital transformation and regulatory enhancement of the national gaming framework.   This funding forms a notable component of the broader €500 million modernisation initiative and highlights the strategic importance of gaming within Italy’s wider technological and organisational reform agenda. The investment focuses on reinforc

Casinos de France, the leading organisation representing the nation’s brick-and-mortar casinos, has issued a firm rejection of any government initiative aimed at authorising online casino gaming.   Their stance comes as renewed pressure builds to revamp France’s digital gambling framework amid rising concerns over illicit online operators. At present, France only permits online sports betting, horse-race wagering and poker, leaving casino-style games strictly off-limits.   Ac

On November 13, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a formal finding and a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) declaring that transactions connected to ten specific gambling operations in Mexico constitute a class of activity posing a primary money laundering threat. The agency laid out a proposal to block these establishments from utilizing the U.S. financial system by instituting a special measure that would bar covere

A newly proposed overhaul of Macau’s advertising legislation could open the door to limited exceptions under the city’s long-standing prohibition on gaming-related advertising.   The Executive Council of Macau has completed its review of a draft bill titled Advertising Law, which seeks to replace the territory’s more than 35-year-old advertising regulations with updated provisions covering key sectors, including real estate, healthcare, and gambling.   According to the govern

Philippine gaming operators recorded PHP94.51 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the third quarter of 2025, a marginal decline from the PHP94.61 billion posted in the same period last year, according to figures released by the Philippine News Agency. The e-games sector saw a 17% increase, generating PHP41.95 billion compared with PHP35.71 billion in the third quarter of 2024. However, much of that growth was driven by strong activity in July, before the mandatory delin

A comprehensive new study from Norway has revealed that young people exhibiting symptoms of gaming problems are significantly more likely to engage in gambling, with the trend being particularly pronounced among girls.   The findings come amid a doubling of gaming disorder rates among Norwegian youth over the past 15 years.   The nationwide survey was conducted by the University of Bergen’s Norwegian Competence Center for Gaming and Gambling Research (SPILLFORSK) and commissi

Strengthening player safety through an effective fight against the illegal gambling market and building public trust were emphasized as key priorities by the President of the National Betting Authority (NBA), Panagiotis Trisokkas, who represented the Authority at the SiGMA Central Europe Summit held in Rome from November 4 to 6. The SiGMA Central Europe Summit, one of the leading international gatherings in the gaming sector, brought together thousands of professionals, regul

Former Speaker of the House Arthur Lira has called on Brazil’s Federal Government to focus on combating illegal betting operations before pursuing higher taxes on licensed companies.   Speaking to journalists during an event in São Paulo, Lira said that betting is “inevitable” in Brazil and argued that prohibition is not an effective approach to managing the industry.   The congressman emphasized that authorities should prioritize enforcement against unlicensed betting platfo

The Netherlands’ gambling regulation entered a new phase in July 2025 as the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) significantly expanded its enforcement scope, extending its oversight beyond licensed operators to include affiliates, media organisations, and marketing agencies. This development represents a decisive shift in the regulator’s strategy, designed to dismantle the broader ecosystem that sustains illegal and non-compliant gambling activity across the Dutch market. For the first

The Coalition of Good Governance (CCG), a civil and public interest consortium in Nigeria, has strongly condemned the National Assembly’s renewed attempt to push the Nigeria Central Gaming Bill, branding it a “voyage of legislative rascality, recklessness and lawlessness” during a recent media briefing. The controversy traces back to July, when the Federation of State Gaming Regulators of Nigeria (FSGRN) voiced strong opposition to the bill, which seeks to grant the federal g

In a quiet but decisive policy update on October 28, 2025, Google formally reclassified sweepstakes casinos as gambling platforms, ending years of uncertainty over how dual-currency operators such as WOW Vegas, Pulsz, and McLuck are categorized within the company’s advertising system.   The amendment appeared in Google’s Gambling and Games Policy, with a brief but pivotal clarification: “Sweepstakes casinos are not social casino games.”   That single line has sweeping implica

Norsk Rikstoto has come under intense regulatory scrutiny after Norway’s Gambling Commission and the national financial supervisory authority identified severe breaches of anti-money laundering (AML) requirements across the operator’s activities.   The findings point to a systematic breakdown of compliance, where key controls were missing, legal duties ignored, and decisions left undocumented—seriously impairing the company’s capacity to detect and report suspicious behavior.

Thailand’s government is preparing to launch a dedicated task force aimed at tracing suspicious financial transactions connected to online gambling, scam operations, and other illicit activities believed to be influencing the baht’s unusual strength.   Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas announced on Wednesday that the new “data bureau” will integrate and synchronize information across multiple government departments and financial institutions to improve oversight and iden

The Swedish Gambling Authority, Spelinspektionen, has officially prohibited CGG Entertainment Ltd from offering games in Sweden after determining that the company was targeting Swedish players without the required licence. CGG Entertainment Ltd, a Cyprus-registered company operating the website cases.gg , allows users to participate in lotteries for goods and purchase so-called ‘mystery boxes,’ where players risk their stake for a chance to win a prize. According to Spelinspe

At the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto urged world leaders to unite in combating illegal online gambling, describing it as a grave threat to both Indonesia’s economy and social fabric. “Online gambling is a very serious issue,” Prabowo declared in his address to fellow leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. “We calculate that we lose around $8 bil

Online gambling operators have long been under regulatory scrutiny for anti-money laundering (AML) compliance, but the recent £650,000 settlement involving NetBet Enterprises Limited has exposed how even reputable and established firms can fall short in protecting their platforms from criminal misuse. The enforcement action serves as a clear reminder of how weak risk assessments, inadequate transaction monitoring, and operational complacency can transform a legitimate busines