The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has urged payment providers across Europe to go further when it comes to cracking down on black market gambling operator activity across the continent.
A push for coordinated action across the payments chain by the EGBA comes as the association files a formal complaint with the Bank of Lithuania against Walletto, a Lithuania-based payment service provider, over the alleged payment processing linked to illegal online operators.
Test transactions during an EGBA investigation into illegal gambling websites and apps targeting European consumers found evidence suggesting Walletto’s services were used in connection with deposits on a number of these platforms.
The association noted that while the complaint is directed at one provider, it signals a wider issue across the payments chain, as an illegal operator’s ability to accept and process transactions means they can ‘continue to function outside legally compliant licensing regimes in the EU, evade regulatory controls, and expose consumers to harm’.
Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of EGBA, commented: “Payment providers should not be allowed to process transactions for illegal gambling operators.
“Illegal operators flourish by exploiting legitimate financial channels and the mainstream payment networks that consumers rely on every day.”
EGBA calls for a more coordinated approach
The EGBA is calling for a more coordinated approach from all gambling industry stakeholders, in particular card schemes, who were described as ‘the rule-setters for the networks through which payments to illegal platforms flow and have access to transaction-level data that other stakeholders cannot see’
Stronger action against illegal operators is being called for by the EGBA across the payments chain – policymakers, gambling and financial regulators, payment service providers, acquirers, and card schemes – with the association highlighting two key points:
- Financial regulators to fully and consistently enforce existing rules, such as EU’s Payment Services Directive and anti-money laundering laws, against payment providers.
- Card schemes take necessary steps to stop payment providers using their networks to process illegal gambling transactions.
Haijer added: “Our aim is simple: to leave them no room to manoeuvre, and to cut off the payment channels they use to reach European consumers.
“Card schemes also have a crucial role to play in combatting illegal transactions: they are better placed than anyone, as they set the rules for these payment networks and see transaction flows no one else can.”
Entain backs payment crackdown
Haijer isn’t the only one who believes payment providers could be doing more to tackle black market operators.
Entain’s International Compliance Director, Joseph Attard, recently told iGaming Expert that one of the best avenues regulated operators have in combating the black market is the payment chain.
Attard said: “The most effective lever is payment enforcement. Blocking card processing and payment services cuts off illegal operators at their most critical point and is far harder to evade than measures like IP blocking.
“Beyond that, licensed operators can support regulators by sharing intelligence, commissioning independent research to quantify harm and publicly calling out those who enable illegal gambling.
“High-profile interventions, such as our Chief Executive Officer Stella David’s recent open letter to Premier League CEO Richard Masters about the prevalent unlicensed sponsorships among their clubs, help reframe the issue as one of consumer protection and integrity rather than industry competition.
“Ultimately, enforcement efforts are most effective when they focus on where the risk of harm is greatest.”
