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Shares in Evoke, the UK-based operator behind William Hill and 888, plunged today after the company cautioned that rising taxes on online gambling will sharply reduce profits and force a sweeping restructuring that could include thousands of job cuts.   The announcement comes on the heels of new tax measures unveiled by UK Finance Minister Rachel Reeves in yesterday’s budget.   Under the government’s plan, taxes on online slots and games will jump from 21% to 40% starting Apr

South Korea’s top online retailer, Coupang, has issued an apology after revealing a large-scale security breach that may have compromised the personal information of almost 34 million domestic customer accounts.   The nation’s internet regulator confirmed that it has launched an inquiry, noting that data linked to the millions of affected accounts appears to have been exposed. Often dubbed the South Korean counterpart to Amazon.com , Coupang now finds itself at the center of

The European Union’s effort to leverage immobilised Russian state assets to support Ukraine has triggered warnings that such a move could increase borrowing costs for governments across the bloc, though several analysts say any effect on sovereign debt markets is likely to remain limited. The European Commission, searching for a long-term financing solution for Kyiv, is focusing on a €140bn “reparation loan” backed by Russian central-bank reserves frozen since 2022. Euroclear

A five-year prison sentence linked to a scheme that laundered 1.2 million dollars has concluded a complex cross-border investigation that involved extradition and a guilty plea. The case centered on a laundering network that funneled drug-derived proceeds through bulk cash pickups across multiple U.S. cities before channeling the funds through accounts registered under unrelated names. Prosecutors detailed how the operation moved money rapidly between the United States and Co

Meta Platforms on Wednesday sharply criticised what it described as “aberrant” and excessively intrusive demands for information issued by EU antitrust regulators during two investigations launched four years ago, marking a new peak in corporate resistance to what many companies argue are disproportionate regulatory powers.     The company — which had earlier compared the European Commission’s data-gathering approach in the Facebook social network and online classified ads pr

Britain is preparing for one of the most sweeping changes to online gambling taxation in years, with Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves unveiling plans to sharply increase the tax burden on the sector’s most lucrative operations.   The details surfaced ahead of schedule after the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) mistakenly published its analysis before the official announcement in the House of Commons.   Under the new framework, online casinos will face a dramati

Iraq’s financial regulators are raising alarms over a growing trend in which social-media personalities are being leveraged as tools for illicit financial transfers.   According to officials, the combination of online visibility, rapid audience engagement, and loosely monitored revenue channels has created conditions that criminal groups can exploit when institutional controls lag behind evolving digital behaviour. The Central Bank of Iraq reports that some transaction flows

A fresh comparison of raw demographic inputs from Blask, examined alongside the markets singled out in the EGBA’s 2023 overview, shows just how differently Europeans approach online gambling — not only in scale, but in who plays and why.   Europe’s gambling heavyweights — Italy, the UK, Germany, France, and Spain — dominate the continent’s revenue landscape according to the EGBA’s 2023 figures, yet the customer profiles behind those numbers, illuminated by Blask’s datasets, p

Ukraine has sharply escalated its campaign against unauthorized grain transfers from occupied territories by imposing sanctions on dozens of vessels identified as part of the maritime infrastructure supporting these movements.   Officials describe the decision as a deliberate strike at the shipping and financial networks that facilitate the extraction and sale of grain controlled by Russian forces, asserting that the proceeds are funneled into opaque structures beyond the rea

Colorado’s gaming authorities have issued a $50,000 fine against BetMGM after determining that the sportsbook violated state regulations by accepting wagers on individual student-athlete performance, a betting category explicitly banned under Colorado law.   The New Jersey-based operator notified regulators of the issue itself, revealing 48 prohibited bets placed on NCAA basketball and football events between March 2023 and October 2024.   The unlawful wagers involved two men

Cyprus’ parliamentary commerce committee is moving closer to approving a reduction in the turnover threshold that determines whether companies can undergo a simple financial statement review rather than a full audit, settling on €400,000.   This represents a significant narrowing from the €900,000 level originally proposed by Disy.   The matter returned to the committee on Tuesday after the taxation department, the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) and the Association of Cyprus Ba

Seven of Europe’s leading gambling authorities have committed to deeper collaboration in an effort to curb the accelerating spread of illegal online gambling, cautioning that rapidly evolving digital ecosystems are enabling unlicensed operators to slip past national regulatory systems. Representatives from Germany, Austria, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Portugal, and Spain cemented this alliance during a meeting held on 12 November 2025 at Spain’s Directorate General for

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has formally withdrawn its lawsuit against SolarWinds and the company’s chief information security officer, bringing an end to a high-profile case that centered on allegations the firm misled investors about its security posture prior to the major 2020 supply chain breach.   A joint motion submitted on November 20, 2025, by the SEC, SolarWinds, and CISO Timothy G. Brown requested the court to voluntarily dismiss the action. In

Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York have brought a wire fraud charge against 53-year-old Derek Wachob, the chief executive of Sapulpa, Oklahoma-based steel pipe manufacturer Paragon Industries, alleging his involvement in a 66 million dollar scheme.   An indictment unsealed on November 18 claims that between October 2022 and August 2024, Wachob directed a fraudulent operation that targeted individual investors, a bank, an investment firm, and at least two

The 16th Pension Forum in Nicosia placed the spotlight on the major challenges confronting Cyprus’ pension system, while also exploring fresh perspectives arising in an environment undergoing rapid transformation, according to the event overview.   The forum, titled ‘Making better decisions – New perspectives for the pension’, took place with the support of Eurobank.   During the discussions, speakers emphasised that the demand for strategic flexibility and specialised expert

Turkish investigators are scrutinising how a licensed electronic money institution and an associated insurance company allegedly enabled criminal proceeds from illegal betting operations to seep into the country’s financial system. The inquiry centres on corporate entities tied to fintech entrepreneur Ozan Özerk, whose broader business network includes firms previously connected to payment streams linked to a sprawling online fraud operation exposed by investigative journalis

In September 2024, Wynn Las Vegas acknowledged to the U.S. Department of Justice that it had “conspired with unlicensed money transmitting businesses that moved millions of dollars in illicit funds through the casino,” agreeing to forfeit an unprecedented $130 million. At the time, the public learned little about what exactly drove the largest-ever forfeiture involving a U.S. casino. The government’s announcement offered only sweeping descriptions, leaving unanswered question

A high-stakes money-laundering dispute has surfaced through a federal lawsuit in North Dakota, where plaintiffs contend that Binance and its former leadership permitted extensive financial movements that allegedly aided Hamas both prior to and following the October 2023 attacks. The complaint argues that the exchange’s structural and governance choices made it possible for crypto assets to circulate covertly in ways that would have faced major barriers in fully regulated fina

Nairobi’s bustling streets are now echoing with more than just the rhythm of daily life; they resonate with the hum of Bitcoin adoption, as “Bankless Bitcoin” ATMs appear in popular shopping centers. These machines represent more than a technological advance—they are a lifeline for many, enabling cash-to-crypto conversion in spaces traditionally dominated by conventional banking. Yet, beneath this surge in accessibility lies a stark reality: regulatory uncertainty threatens t

Google has rolled out yet another update to its gambling advertising policy, bringing its rules further in line with regulations enforced in various jurisdictions. Under the newly introduced restrictions, advertisers are now blocked from promoting offline gambling in any region where such activity is deemed illegal. In its announcement, Google confirmed that 35 countries fall under the updated limitations, explaining that “the promotion of offline gambling is prohibited in lo

Mounting concern over increasingly coordinated financial schemes targeting Korean citizens has pushed the KoFIU’s AML agenda into a phase of acute urgency. Patterns tied to cross-border fraud networks, synchronized mule operations, and the rapid circulation of illicit funds through both banking and nonbank channels have expanded, prompting regulators to reconsider how domestic institutions identify and address structural vulnerabilities. The most recent industry meeting revea