UK Targets the Money and Assets of Illegal Betting
The UK Gambling Commission has announced that it will go beyond shutting down the websites of illegal gambling operators and will target their money, assets and business models. The Commission said that since January it has referred more than £40 million in suspected criminal proceeds to partner agencies for asset freezing.
As the first Illegal Gambling Awareness Week, held from 9-13 November, got under way, the UK Gambling Commission said it will no longer limit its enforcement to closing down websites. The Commission will now also target the money, assets and business models of illegal operators.
Sue Young, Executive Director of Operations, said that anyone running illegal betting will be pursued and that their businesses and money are now targets. Young said operators' payment systems will be disrupted, their advertising will be blocked, and their access to the game and sports betting content they rely on will be cut off.
The Commission has referred more than £40 million in suspected criminal proceeds to partner agencies for asset freezing since January. It also continues to work with police forces to seize cash from physical illegal betting venues.
In the 2026/27 period so far, the Commission has issued more than 1,000 cease and desist notices, reported 7.8 million URLs to search engines, removed 3 million URLs from search results, and referred 2,200 websites for blocking. URL referrals rose from 147,721 in the first quarter to 7.7 million in the second quarter.
The Commission is supporting the international awareness campaign launched by IAGR. It said it will continue to work with police forces, the industry, technology companies and financial institutions. The Great Britain Gambling Survey published last week and the updated illegal betting dashboard are also being used to support enforcement.
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