Celton Manx, the parent company of SBOTOP, has been hit with a £3,937,500 penalty from the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC) for anti-money laundering (AML) failures.
The GSC found that the company lacked evidence of proper risk assessments, ongoing customer monitoring, enhanced due diligence and sufficient identity verification procedures, as well as falling short when it comes to handling suspicious activity.
The regulator noted that the original penalty was £5,625.000, however, it was discounted by 30% after the company undertook “comprehensive remediation” to address the identified issues.
A GSC statement read: “The Commission is satisfied that the imposition of the Civil Penalty on Celton Manx reflects the serious nature of the identified non-compliance and the issues and risks identified.
“It was further noted that Celton Manx acknowledged the serious shortcomings in its operational and governance arrangements at an early stage of the Commission’s investigation and thereupon had entered into settlement discussions with the Commission and sought to resolve matters expeditiously.”
TGP Europe exits the UK
Celton Manx held an Isle of Man licence from August 2008 until surrendering it on 9 May 2025, a decision that was part of a wider exit of the UK by the Isle of Man-based TGP Europe.
Prior to its departure, TGP Europe operated SBOTOP in the UK via a white label agreement with Celton Manx, as well as operated the UK domain names of several Asia-focused brands, such as DEBET.
However, the platforms associated with TGP Europe ceased their UK operations after the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) uncovered significant AML failures by TGP. The company was handed a £3m penalty by the UKGC following its investigation.
John Pierce, UKGC Head of Enforcement, commented at the time of TGP’s exit: “This case involves a gambling company that was unwilling or unable to meet the regulatory standards we expect from our licensees. It is right that they have now exited the British market.
“Following TGP’s exit, several online gambling operators can no longer lawfully offer gambling facilities to consumers located in Great Britain. These sites, previously operating under TGP’s licence, may not provide adequate protection against criminal activity or gambling-related harm and should not be available to GB consumers with immediate effect.”
Criminal infiltration
Financial crime is an ongoing concern for the Isle of Man given its established financial sector and links to the UK, and it is often the destination for operators seeking regulatory approval.
However, media reports claim that the crown dependency has been subject to attacks by criminals to bypass its controls against financial crime and immigration.
As a result, the Isle of Man’s government has warned that there is “limited appetite” for iGaming businesses with links to East or Southeast Asia.
This sentiment was revealed upon the publication of Digital Isle of Man’s National Risk Appetite Statement (NRAS), a document that seeks to outline the attitude towards new and current iGaming business relationships on the island and identify risk factors.
Although entities are not expressly prohibited from engaging with what are considered higher-risk jurisdictions, they must implement enhanced measures to manage the risks effectively.
In addition, if there is an accumulation of identifiable risk factors, regulators “will not authorise new business, and will review the terms of any existing licences, on the basis of this being outside of the national risk appetite for the Isle of Man”.
According to the report, iGaming contributes 16% of the Isle of Man’s GDP and provides over 1,000 jobs.
