Entain has backed a Regulus Partners report which has asked the UK government to “implement a concerted policy crackdown on the growing threat of black market operators to grow revenues and enhance player protections”.
Revealed at SBC Summit in Lisbon by Entain Chair Barry Gibson, Regulus Partners’ report sets out a series of policy proposals to combat unlicensed operators in the UK and internationally, helping to “close a tax gap of almost £340m for the UK Exchequer across the next parliament”.
“Taking on the black market operators should be a key priority for policymakers around the world,” commented Gibson
“It will tackle crime and raise money which could be spent on critical areas such as healthcare, education and infrastructure. It would ensure that customers get greater protection from playing with fully regulated and legitimate operators.”
Entain noted that Regulus Partners’ report showed that “black market participation in the UK is still growing” despite the country’s “proportionate and well-balanced regulatory framework”.
However, international markets are even more affected by the illegal market due to the “impact of bans or heavy restrictions on popular gambling products, which encourage players towards the black market”.
In France where “around 45% of gambling revenue is spent in the black market”, while in Germany, the figure is “as much as 60%”.
The Regulus report added that legal and regulatory countermeasures against the illegal market “have not yet been utilised widely” and that such countermeasures “can be highly effective as long as the domestically regulated product offer remains attractive”.
Five countermeasures were described within the report. These were:
- Blocking payments to black market operators through payment services providers to force them out of the market – while working with banks to ensure legitimate customers can gamble
- Restrictions on mainstream/social media advertising
- Blocking the IP addresses of operators and using the new Online Safety Act to make black market access more onerous
- Stepping up criminal enforcement to tip the risk-reward balance against unlicensed operators doing business.
- Public blacklist to educate consumers
Regulus Partners’ report follows research published last week by Frontier Economics for the Betting and Gaming Council which has estimated that 1.5 million members of the British public wager almost £4.3bn on the illegal market every year.
In response to that report, the BGC called for “balanced regulations and stable taxation” as the best form of defence to combat the illegal gambling market.
Gibson added: “This is a pivotal moment; if we go down the route of further tax increases rather than tackle the black market, it will drive even more customers towards unscrupulous operators and damage responsible, regulated businesses.”