Evolution to pay £4.75m settlement in the United Kingdom

• Evolution Gaming has settled an investigation with the UKGC, agreeing to pay a multi-million enforcement action
• The regulator noted that the decision comes at the end of an 18-month investigation
• Evolution has taken immediate remedial steps both in the UK as well as across Europe

Evolution Gaming has settled with the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), under the conditions of which the company will pay £4.75m. The settlement is tied to an investigation into suspected black market operations by Evolution.

The investigation, launched in December 2024, established that Evolution Gaming’s content was offered at two operators and six websites that targeted British customers but did not have the necessary license from the UKGC to do so.

Evolution settles with UKGC, to pay £4.75m over supplying of games to illegal operators

"Evolution has fully cooperated with the Commission consistent with its longstanding approach to regulatory engagement. The company routinely takes technical, legal and commercial action to identify, address and prevent unauthorised access to its content," the commission said in its conclusion of the case, which took 18 months to fully investigate.

One of the factors that contributed to a more amicable resolution of the issue was the fact that Evolution moved to immediately terminate its commercial partnerships with the operators which were targeting British customers and using the supplier’s studio games.

The investigation also prompted Evolution to rapidly scale its efforts in ensuring that partner operators are not operating illegally across Europe, with the company seeking to avoid similar run-ins with regulators.

Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund has confirmed the news, and said: "At Evolution, we always want to do what is right, and it is not acceptable that six unlicensed sites offered Evolution content in the regulated UK market. "

"We do not want traffic from unlicensed operators and will always move quickly to address any such situation. We welcome the conclusion of the review and remain focused on continuing to supply our world-leading games to licensed operators in the UK," Carlesund added.

The UKGC is currently in a busy period, with the regulator seeking to lessen the regulatory burden on licensed operators through a public consultation while strengthening consumer protection.

The conversation around regulation has also been focusing increasingly on black market and illegal gambling, which continues to grow in the United Kingdom and presents a challenge for consumer protection as well as licensed operators who bear the brunt of regulatory pressure.

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