Spillemyndigheden, the Danish gambling authority, has raised serious concerns about Mr Green’s compliance with the country’s Money Laundering Act, pinpointing three primary areas of deficiency.
These concerns include inadequate risk assessments, flawed business processes, and a significant lack of documentation for necessary checks.
The first issue identified by Spillemyndigheden is Mr Green’s “flawed” risk assessment practices, particularly in failing to assess risks associated with individual payment solutions and delivery channels, as mandated by Section 7 of the Money Laundering Act.
The regulator stressed, “Companies covered by the law must identify and assess the risk that the company may be misused for money laundering or the financing of terrorism.”
Furthermore, Spillemyndigheden noted deficiencies in Mr Green’s business procedures regarding internal controls, which do not specify how frequently these controls should be implemented nor maintain written procedures on how these checks should be conducted.
This is a violation of Section 8, which requires sufficient written business procedures, including internal controls.
The authority elaborated, “The requirement for internal control also implies that a check must be carried out as to whether the controls are carried out – i.e., that a control is carried out with the controls.
Mr Green has not sufficiently complied with business process obligations for controls.”
Additionally, the final injunction addresses Mr Green’s lack of documentation for checks and internal controls, aligning again with Section 8 requirements that companies must document such checks.
Separately, Spillemyndigheden issued another reprimand related to Mr Green’s non-compliance with Section 26 of the Money Laundering Act, which involves immediate notification to the Money Laundering Secretariat upon suspicion of money laundering or terrorism financing activities.
“Mr Green has not complied with the obligations regarding notifications, as there has been no immediate notification,” stated Spillemyndigheden.
Responding to these issues, a spokesperson from 888, the owner of Mr Green, acknowledged the findings from a routine audit: “Following a routine audit of Mr Green by the Danish regulatory, Spillemyndigheden, we have three audit findings to address.
“We are working closely with the regulator and plan to make some minor amendments to our AML processes and accompanying documentation.”
Looking ahead, Mr Green is required to address these infringements decisively.
Spillemyndigheden has set deadlines for compliance, demanding a revised risk assessment and updated business processes for internal controls by June 10, along with proper documentation of checks by October 10.
These directives underscore the authority’s commitment to stringent enforcement of anti-money laundering regulations, ensuring that Mr Green rectifies the identified deficiencies without delay.