UKGC Targets Illegal Gambling Payments and £40M in Suspected Funds

The shift was announced on November 9, as the first Illegal Gambling Awareness Week began. It follows months of action against unlicensed gambling websites, but puts more emphasis on the businesses and services that keep those operations running.

At the ECB’s November 9 reference rates, £40 million was approximately $53.7 million (£1 = $1.3416).

£40M Referred for Potential Asset Freezing

The Commission confirmed the £40 million figure in its November 9 announcement. The £40 million covers suspected criminal funds referred to partner agencies for potential freezing, with the amounts actually frozen or recovered yet to be confirmed.

Sue Young, the Commission’s Executive Director of Operations, outlined the wider approach to industry leaders at a CEO briefing last week and international regulatory partners in October. The Commission is also working with law enforcement on cash seizures linked to illegal land-based gambling.

Payments, Advertising and Game Supply in Focus

The expanded strategy covers three parts of an illegal operator’s business:

1. Payments – disrupting the movement of money linked to unlicensed gambling;
2. Advertising – making it harder for illegal operators to reach customers;
3. Games and sportsbooks – restricting access to the products and technology used to run gambling platforms.

These measures go further than removing a casino from search results. A website can lose visibility while retaining its payment channels, suppliers and other commercial relationships.

For payment intermediaries and B2B suppliers, the announcement points to closer scrutiny of their connections with unlicensed operators. The Commission has not announced new supplier rules or identified specific companies in its November 9 statement.

Website Takedowns Continue Alongside Financial Action

The regulator is keeping its existing website disruption programme. During the current 2026/27 financial year, it has reported:

• More than 1,000 cease-and-desist notices;
• 7.8 million URLs referred to search engines;
• 3 million URLs removed from search results;
• More than 2,200 websites referred for disruption action.

Those figures were already disclosed in the Commission’s earlier November updates. The £40 million in suspected funds and the broader focus on commercial infrastructure are the main developments in the latest announcement.

The Commission plans to work with financial institutions, technology companies and law enforcement agencies as the approach develops.