French Authority Fines Sports Betting Operator Over AML Failures

Highlights

• France’s National Sanctions Committee fined a sports betting operator and two senior executives.
• The sanctions followed failures involving asset-freezing rules and an account linked to a listed individual.

France’s National Sanctions Committee (CNS) has fined a French-licensed online sports betting operator and two senior executives over anti-money laundering and asset-freezing failures.

The operator, identified as GU in the CNS decision, received a two-month suspension from online betting operations. It also received a €20,000 fine.

The company’s former CEO received a two-month ban from managing activities in the online betting sector. The executive also received a €20,000 fine.

Meanwhile, the operator’s compliance officer received a two-month management ban and a €5,000 fine.

The case involved an account opened on 3 December 2023. The account belonged to an individual listed on France’s national register of people subject to an asset-freezing order.

GU’s automated systems generated alerts on the same day. However, the operator did not confirm the account until 14 December, 11 days later.

The French gambling regulator, ANJ, notified the operator in January 2024. It also launched an administrative investigation into the case. GU later closed the account on 4 January.

The CNS found that GU lacked effective systems and procedures to apply asset-freezing obligations promptly. In addition, the operator failed to notify the relevant economic authorities about the incident and related transactions.

French online gambling operators remain subject to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing requirements under the country’s monetary and financial legislation.

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