666Bet ‘unable to pay’ customers winnings

ator 666Bet has informed its customers that they will have to wait until it can operate online again to collect their winnings.

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) and the Alderney Gaming Control Commission suspended the operating licences used by 666Bet last month, which is held by Metro Play Limited, 666Bet’s online casino subsidiary brand, while a review into the company is carried out.

UKGC sent out a statement at that time confirming that 666Bet was “authorised to settle any outstanding winning bets that it has accepted in reliance on the above operating licence and return any outstanding balances to customers”.

Following the suspension of its licence, 666Bet told customers via its Twitter page that “every customer owed money will be paid”.

But a petition, which at the time of writing has reached 298 signatures, has been created and signed by 666Bet customers who have not yet been paid.

666Bet said in a statement on its Facebook page: “While the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) have stated that we do not require a licence in order for customers to withdraw their money and authorised us to do so, this is misleading as it does not recognise the fact that, as a web-based company, we need to be online in order for customers to action their withdrawals via their accounts. In order to get back online we need the help of a third party provider.

“Following the suspension of our licences by both the UKGC and the Alderney Gaming Control Commission, a number of our third party providers immediately cancelled or suspended our contracts with them, including payment providers. We therefore do not currently have the ability to pay customers out unless we reach an agreement with other providers to return as a ‘white label’.”

666Bet director Paul Bell was arrested on two separate occasions in connection with a £21m money laundering and fraud investigation last month, which 666Bet claimed was not linked to its operations, before being released on bail.