LeoVegas downsize affiliate operation in the UK

egas has announced in a statement on its website that it will only be offering its services to a small number of affiliates in the United Kingdom, amidst regulatory changes.

Back in September, LeoVegas announced it was withdrawing its services from the Australian market in response to new gambling regulations. Now the company has limited its services as a response to a number of recent announcements made by the UKGC regarding market updates.

In November, the UKGC warned operators to review their terms and conditions to ensure customers are treated fairly, as well as enhance consumer protection efforts to better protect punters.

In its statement, LeoVegas stated it had been working closely with the UKGC to ensure its business with various affiliates were compliant.

“As we appreciate the challenges around implementing these changes, we have provided clear guidance of what we expect from our affiliates and have tried to keep an open line of communication with our affiliates to support them throughout this process,” LeoVegas said.

“We are encouraged to see that several affiliates are taking these changes seriously and have taken on compliance managers or external legal counsel to ensure their ongoing compliance; this is something that we welcome.”

Nonetheless, during this period of consultation, various affiliates were not willing to comply, resulting in LeoVegas’ decision to reduce its business relationships.

“However, based on the response we have received to these initial actions, it is clear that these compliance requirements are not easily met for some affiliates,” LeoVegas stated.

Earlier this year, Sky Bet made the controversial decision to close its affiliate programme, raising concerns over the compliance of the marketing of a number of its affiliates amid mounting regulatory pressure.

“The recent announcements from UKGC and guidance from the CMA delivered at the Raising Standards conference clearly indicate further ongoing changes to compliance requirements going forward and, naturally, we must ensure our affiliates are prepared to address these needs,” added LeoVegas.

“We are not and will not be able to continuously provide review and guidance services to all affiliates and would like to emphasise that the responsibility to achieve compliance ultimately sits with the affiliate.

“For these reasons going forward, although we value all the hard work all our affiliates have been putting in to the partnership, we are only able to continue to work with a small number of affiliates who satisfy our compliance standards, share our commitment to compliance, and further have the operational scale to guarantee ongoing compliance and deliver a worthwhile contribution to our business.”