Victoria Gate Casino in Leeds, West Yorkshire has had its licence suspended while the Gambling Commission undertakes a review of its anti-money laundering compliance standards.

The city centre casino, located in a shopping centre complex, is a popular night-time destination where players could enjoy 22 live betting tables and 175 slots and electronic roulette games. That has now changed, at least temporarily, as the Commission continues its clampdown on licence breaches.

The Commission has not provided detailed information on the nature of its review of Victoria Gate’s licence other than that it concerns compliance with anti-money laundering requirements.

It has, however, stated that failings were identified at the venue that are “considered significant and a serious threat to the licensing objectives, in particular keeping crime out of gambling”.

The regulator’s statement explained: “During a recent Compliance Assessment, VGC Leeds Limited are reasonably believed to have failed to maintain and implement effective anti-money laundering policies, procedures, and controls, as required under the conditions of their licence.

“In addition, serious concerns were identified regarding the adequacy of decision-making processes and the Licensee’s response to identified anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing risks, raising questions about the overall effectiveness of its governance and risk management arrangements.”

In the absence of any further information from the Commission, the events leading to an investigation of Victoria Leeds are purely speculation.

However, lack of compliance with AML and social responsibility standards have formed the basis for the vast majority of Commission enforcement actions in recent years.

A common theme is instances of bettors gambling thousands or in some cases hundreds of thousands of pounds within a short space of time without the operator in question carrying out any kind of source of funds check.

The Commission has been particularly active in enforcing compliance with these regulations over the past few years, having issued record penalties to Entain in 2022 (£17m) and William Hill in 2023 (£19m). A more recent occurrence saw Unibet penalised £10m for similar licensing breaches.

Instances of licence suspensions as in Leeds today are rare in comparison to penalties, though this week seems to be really bucking the trend as the suspension of Victoria Gate Casino’s licence comes just one day after online casino games developer Spribe had its Gambling Software licence suspended, over what the firm has acknowledged as a ‘technical licence mishap’.

A Leeds City Council spokesperson responded to queries from SBC News: “We have been made aware by the Gambling Commission that the operating licence for Victoria Gate Casino has been suspended with immediate effect and that the casino will no longer be authorised to offer any gambling activities.

“As Leeds City Council did not issue the licence in question, all enquiries regarding the action taken against Victoria Gate Casino need to be directed to the Gambling Commission.”