Parent Company Of FanDuel, PokerStars Fined For Anti-Money Laundering Violations
Flutter-related incidents flagged in Sweden; AML still hot topic at U.S. brick-and-mortar casinos
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The top revenue-generating online gambling company in the U.S., Ireland-headquartered Flutter Entertainment, has been hit with a fine for anti-money laundering (AML) violations overseas.
The Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) found that TSG Interactive failed to collect the necessary information on the source of funds for at least nine customers, a breach of AML protocols in a regulated market. TSG Interactive operates PokerStars, the second most high-profile online gaming brand under the Flutter banner after the sports betting, daily fantasy, and online casino giant FanDuel.
The SGA fined TSG the equivalent in Swedish currency of $734,000 in American money. How substantial that amount seems is a matter of perspective, as the publicly traded Flutter has a market cap of $43.3 billion.
According to the SGA’s release announcing the fine, “Nine of the ten customers who were included in the Swedish Gambling Authority’s sample during the period under review made deposits without TSG taking adequate and sufficient customer due diligence measures at all or sufficiently promptly.” The 10th customer could not be properly assessed by the SGA due to missing documentation.
One key word used by the SGA to describe the AML failures: “systematic.”
The SGA further explained of the violations that TSG “did not collect information about the customers’ annual income until after the Swedish Gambling Authority had initiated supervision.”
Sin City, indeed
Although neither FanDuel nor PokerStars is in any publicly known hot water with regard to AML protocols in the U.S. — nor are any other major regulated online gambling sites — on the brick-and-mortar casino side, AML has been an ongoing headline-grabbing topic.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) has filed AML complaints dating to 2024 against Resorts World Las Vegas, MGM Resorts and its former President Scott Sibella, Wynn Las Vegas, and the newest Strip property, Fontainebleau.
These complaints and allegations all tie in with what has colloquially become known as the Shohei Ohtani betting scandal, though the Dodgers star is believed to have had nothing to do with the gambling in question. Rather, it was his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, who was placing wagers with illegal bookmakers, and it was those bookmakers who allegedly laundered their money by gambling it at these Las Vegas properties.
Resorts World was fined $10.5 million for its violations, and MGM Resorts got slapped with an $8.5 million fine. The NGCB has not yet announced fines for Wynn and Fontainebleau.
