Illegal Betting Is Not Replacing Licensed Gambling
A new study by the UK Gambling Commission finds that using illegal betting sites has not replaced licensed betting activity. Consumers who make up the large majority of the identified transactions continue to use licensed operators as well.
The UK Gambling Commission has published new research on the illegal betting market. The study is based on Open Banking data and challenges one of the common claims made in the industry.
The research identified 3,426 transactions linked to 179 people. Of those who repeatedly made illegal betting transactions, 91 percent also used licensed operators. There was no clear decline in licensed transactions after people first came into contact with illegal sites.
Based on these findings, the Commission said the idea that a shift to illegal sites directly replaces licensed activity is not valid. It stressed that payments to illegal sites appear to sit alongside consumers' existing betting behaviour.
Harm is another concern. Of the 146 people who had a Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) score, 45 percent scored 8 or higher, which indicates problem gambling. Among consumers who used licensed operators, the rate was 6 percent. The Commission also noted that the data is not nationally representative and that some transactions may not have been detected.
In the UK, betting with credit is prohibited. Even so, 138 transactions, or 4 percent, were identified as made by credit card. The remaining 3,288 transactions were made from current accounts. The payments to illegal sites were also generally found to follow one another in quick succession.
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