The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC) has imposed a £200,000 ($272,100) discretionary civil penalty on Shelgeyr Limited, the owner of Maverick Games, after concluding an enforcement investigation into breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing requirements.
The public statement, issued under Section 19 of the Gambling (Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism) Act 2018, follows a regulatory inspection that identified prima facie contraventions of the Gambling (AML/CFT) Code 2019.
Shelgeyr was licensed under the Online Gambling Regulation Act 2001 from November 2018 until surrendering its licence in July 2024.
According to the Commission, the investigation uncovered systemic weaknesses across customer due diligence, enhanced due diligence (EDD), ongoing monitoring and risk assessment.
These included allowing accounts to continue operating without sufficient EDD, failure to properly assess source of wealth, inadequate handling of potential politically exposed persons and insufficient documentation of monitoring activities.
The regulator also cited failures in governance and internal controls. Shelgeyr was found to have deficiencies in its business risk assessment, customer risk assessment and transaction risk assessment, including inadequate consideration of jurisdictional risks and the acceptance of convertible virtual currency payments.
The Commission further concluded that the operator could not demonstrate that key compliance roles, including the MLRO and AML/CFT Compliance Officer, had sufficient expertise or authority.
Additional breaches related to training, with the Commission stating that Shelgeyr could not evidence up-to-date AML/CFT training for all staff, nor demonstrate appropriate oversight of outsourced functions.
The £200,000 penalty was calculated in line with the Commission’s Discretionary Civil Penalties Policy and includes a discount reflecting Shelgeyr’s admissions and cooperation during the investigation.
The GSC stated that the sanction was proportionate given the seriousness, nature and extent of the identified failings.
In its statement, the Commission emphasised that responsibility for compliance rests with an operator’s board, including ensuring effective oversight of systems, controls and outsourced activities. It added that boards should receive sufficiently detailed reporting to satisfy themselves that documented arrangements are being followed in practice.
In January 2025, the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission issued guidance warning gambling firms about the growing use of AI-generated deepfakes in money laundering and terrorist financing, urging operators to strengthen controls around identity verification and staff training.
The Isle of Man positions AML/CFT enforcement as central to maintaining confidence in its gambling sector, with the regulator increasingly focusing on governance accountability and operational resilience alongside technical compliance
