The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has gone tough on one of its licensees over serious violations of compliance and enforcement rules.
The regulatory body announced earlier this week that it has decided to revoke the license of Star World Limited, the company behind the Mr Ringo online casino brand. The license cancellation came into effect on September 26, 2019, the gambling watchdog said in a statement on its official website.
Star World held a B2C license from the MGA that authorized it to provide online gambling services in jurisdictions that recognize the authority of the Maltese watchdog.
The MGA said that the gambling operator’s license revocation means that it is no longer authorized to operate its Mr Ringo brand, register new players and accept new customer deposits. The regulatory body went on that Star World is required to provide registered gamblers with access to their player accounts and refund all funds that are standing to the credit of its existing players in accordance with the applicable law.
News about the cancellation of Star World’s license arrived just days after another gambling operator, UWin4U Limited, faced the same punishment from the Maltese gambling regulator.
Heavy Violations
The MGA said in its statement announcing Star World’s license cancellation that the gambling operator has breached three paragraphs – (e), (f), and (h) – of the Third Schedule to the Gaming Act. The regulatory body explained further that the company’s violations involved failing to “effect payments to the Authority when lawfully due”, to “effect payments to players when lawfully due”, and to “ensure the integrity and availability of essential regulatory data.”
Star World’s license revocation followed a previous ruling by the MGA regarding the company’s gambling activities.
In August 2017, the regulator suspended the operator’s B2C license indefinitely. The MGA did not provide information on what had prompted its decision back then.
Prior to its MGA license suspension two years ago, Star World’s Mr Ringo online casino was subject to heavy criticism within the iGaming community. The brand faced multiple complaints by players who reported that they had become victims of unmotivated confiscation of their winnings, delayed or even denied payments, and lack of customer support, among others.
The Maltese regulator said that Star World will be able to appeal its license cancellation. It is to be seen whether that will happen.
The MGA has not been the only regulator to have recently been busy punishing erring operators. The UK Gambling Commission suspended last month the operations of Russian bookmaker 1xBet over serious violations of UK gambling codes and regulations.
The UK regulatory body also suspended the B2C license of iGaming software provider and white label casino and betting operator EveryMatrix. The company was scolded by the Gambling Commission over compliance deficiencies demonstrated by some of its white label casinos. EveryMatrix announced this week that it has decided to shut down its B2C operations in the UK after its license suspension, saying that the business has become “unsalvageable.”
