Question about Gambling websites with Curaçao license using incorrect Merchant Category code (page 994)

I have a similar situation for a case opened against a casino guys. I think I cannot share now but as soon as Casinoguru does something about because I’m waiting since days I’ll share and is really bad and sad

Update from the UKGC

https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/report/illegal-online-gambling-disruption-of-illegal-online-gambling/new-tactics-coming-into-use-disruption-of-illegal-online-gambling

Further payment blocking coming into use

In January 2025, following a successful test-purchase exercise on an unlicensed website, the Commission made its first referral to Visa. Since then, the Commission has made a further 3 referrals, relating to 3 separate unlicensed websites.

Referrals are made to Visa where it is identified that an unlicensed website is offering Visa payment for the deposit and/or withdrawal of funds from the website. A referral to Visa can only take place once a successful test-purchase exercise is carried out; it is not possible to simply signpost them to the website because they need the associated financial data to take action. Evidence of a successful test-purchase transaction carried out by the Commission must be provided to support the referral.

Upon receipt of the Commission’s completed referral, Visa commence their own investigation that allows them to trace the transaction to an acquirer1 and raise a compliance case against them. It is the Commission’s understanding that the acquirer is then mandated to respond to the compliance case and terminate any dealing with the rogue merchant. In practice, this means that the unlicensed website that the referral relates to can no longer process Visa payments.

As the referral process with Visa has now been solidified it is gradually becoming a commonly used disruption method it is the Commission’s intention to duplicate this disruption method with Mastercard. The foundations have been laid through inter-organisational conversations to provide the Commission with a route into Mastercard, where referrals can be made and much like with Visa, be dealt with expeditiously by a dedicated team.

Although Visa and Mastercard payments are currently the focus of the Commission’s attention, we anticipate that payment provider disruption can be expanded to include digital wallets such as PayPal, Google Pay, Apple Pay, and so on.

Furthermore, the Commission is acutely aware of the emerging prevalence of cryptocurrency as a regularised form of payment across the illegal marketplace due to its anonymous nature. When this is combined with research completed by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (opens in new tab) which shows that 12 percent of UK adults now own cryptocurrency, up from 10 percent in previous findings, it is clear that cryptocurrency payments in the illegal market is an area that must be considered in the Commission’s disruption work.

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Looks like VISA are closing in on a lot of these merchants now but Mastercard lagging behind. Looks like action is finally being taken though which is positive. Anyone still thinking that what these sites are doing is "legal" needs their heads examined including this site.

Would be even better if the did auto refunds for all previous matters but looks good I dont use them now though

What's the chances of being able to use this update with our banks now?

Not sure mate - don't know if it will do much but you could try. I think the UKGC position is that they are trying to disrupt future payments so not sure it carries much value but every little helps I suppose.

Hello,

I checked your profile and found two active complaints about the account being closed. So those cases are already handled by my colleagues. If you, however, face anything else, including failed self-exclusion in an online casino, please feel free to submit another complaint once you are ready.

The principle is very much the same; hence, do not hesitate to complain every time you need to.

The problem is that I've been filing complaints for days and nothing has been done yet.

I may not fully understand, but I want to remind you that both you and the mediator, as well as the casino, have 7 days to respond to your complaint. The matter seems to be your concern now.

Well, it takes some time to reach the resolution phase, yes. You need to be patient, I'm afraid.

Go through this guide 👈 so you won't face surprises. 🙏

ok Could be but since days and days nothing happens .

How can I contact you?

Don’t see any with the correct merchant codes…

I think you need to be thinking about this a little bit differently. Whilst Visa might own the payment platform, they don’t control how individual institutions actually operate it. Look at how APP fraud and card or point-of-sale frauds are handled — they always have to be flagged, escalated, and properly investigated.

With the collective effort going into this — between the platform itself, the Ombudsman, and now the FCA stepping in — Visa will be expected to at least review and explain why there aren’t sufficient controls in place to prevent these kinds of issues. All of the big UK banks have faced similar situations — frauds, fines, and regulatory findings about weaknesses in their systems or third-party processes. So now that there’s scrutiny on Visa, they’ll have no choice but to go through audit and compliance reviews under FCA regulations and demonstrate how their payment platforms are being managed.

Visa’s a massive global organisation, and naturally they’ll have multiple platforms in use across different countries — not all necessarily running fully in line with every local regulation. But this kind of oversight and feedback loop is exactly what pushes them to tighten things up and make changes.

And you’re absolutely right — according to Visa’s own rules, anything operating illegally (which this clearly falls under given the UK Gambling Commission’s position and the lack of licensing) has to be addressed. I’m not saying it’ll be a quick fix or that we’ll definitely see a retrospective outcome, but it could still open the door for some sort of compensation or reimbursement route.

Either way, I’ll keep you guys posted — I’m quite close to this through work, so as soon as there’s movement or updates, I’ll let you know.

Did you manage to contact aiproff as I have the same

it’s hard to be impartial when you get paid by non gamstop & unregulated casinos and also promote them. The whole scene is a shambles

There is any contact email for this one? Skinsonly LONDON, Orb LONDON, Mastertools NORTHAMPTON, Intelli Global Ltd, Lps_flgames Warsaw, Gamingstore NORTHAMPTON

cdexshop I'm looking for also!

I believe cdexshop is possible swipez. As cdex and dsol pay appear as the same on my statement

Hi anyone got any idea who these are Klashard*126096472 Palanga LTU and also if you are looking for softpulse solutions Ltd here are the contact details for them much appreciated

Are these lot still at it ,They have been reported to the hmrc you need to contact the insolvency and inforcment agencies regarding skinsonly and orb there are ongoing cases against them and the gamingstore

Have you had any look contacting soft pulse solutions ?