Kindred’s Spooniker gets money laundering failure fine in Sweden
The Swedish regulatory authority, Spelinspektionen, has imposed a substantial fine of SEK 10 million ($1 million) on Kindred Group’s subsidiary, Spooniker, for failing to rectify identified deficiencies in its anti-money laundering (AML) systems following a 2022 regulatory review.
Spooniker operates under commercial online gaming and betting licenses in Sweden, managing multiple websites, including unibet.se, bingo.se, ottocasino.se, and mariabingo.se.
The regulatory body found that Spooniker’s customer due diligence practices fell short of the necessary standards required to effectively assess money laundering risks. Consequently, the operator has not only been fined SEK 10 million but has also received a formal warning.
Historical Context: Spooniker’s Previous Infraction
On November 17, 2022, Spelinspektionen conducted an initial review that revealed several “shortcomings” in Spooniker’s processes for mitigating money laundering and terrorist financing risks. At that time, the operator faced a fine of SEK 10.9 million ($1.1 million).
In a subsequent inspection, the regulatory agency requested information regarding five customers who registered between May 1, 2023, and April 30, 2024. They sought Spooniker’s internal risk assessment and guidelines for monitoring customer activity.
The review of customer data revealed that numerous accounts were flagged multiple times by Spooniker’s monitoring systems due to unusual deposit patterns and high transaction volumes.
Delayed Measures: A Cause for Concern
According to Spelinspektionen, Spooniker failed to undertake any additional actions beyond gathering information about taxable income on one occasion, despite players making deposits equal to or exceeding their total annual taxable income.
The regulator emphasized that Spooniker should have implemented more rigorous customer due diligence measures, particularly since it possessed affordability information on these players. Furthermore, documentation concerning transaction histories was found to be inadequate and incomplete. This pertained to funds transferred from another gambling entity into customer bank accounts, which were subsequently deposited into Spooniker accounts.
Spelinspektionen stated: “By not obtaining adequate information to verify the origin of the funds, the company failed to assess the legitimacy of its customers’ activities and transactions, leaving them vulnerable to risks associated with money laundering and terrorist financing.”
Spooniker has been criticized for conducting its due diligence investigations belatedly. One particular customer included in the recent scrutiny had deposited a staggering SEK 460,000. Given that this was a new customer, the regulator indicated that more stringent measures and follow-ups should have been instituted.
Improvements Implemented by Spooniker
Despite the infractions, the regulator acknowledged that Spooniker has made strides in enhancing its systems. The implementation of a continuous monitoring program and the introduction of monthly loss limits are notable advancements.
Spooniker reported to Spelinspektionen that there have been no subsequent indicators of money laundering concerning the players under review.
On June 1, 2024, Spelinspektionen announced a recalibration of penalty calculation methodologies. However, because the violations concerning Spooniker occurred prior to these changes, the maximum penalty remains capped at €1 million.
This incident follows a previous violation in which Kindred’s Spooniker was penalized with SEK 30 million for offering unauthorized bonuses and lotteries in March 2020.
