MGM Resorts fined $50,250 by PGCB for failure to file principal licensing application

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has fined MGM Resorts International $50,250 for failing to “timely” file a principal licensing application, following additional enforcement action brought against BetMGM in March. 

MGM Resorts reached a consent agreement with the Board’s Office of Enforcement Counsel for the September 23 incident, while German-based firm CountR GmbH was fined $50,000 by the PGCB for an unapproved change of license control and failure to pay required licensing fees. 

On March 25, the PGCB issued a $100,000 fine to BetMGM for failing to provide sufficient know-your-customer (KYC) protocols, allowing individuals to create multiple betting accounts using stolen personal information and payment devices.

As a result of the KYC protocol failures, four individual fraud rings were identified by the PGCB, each of which had been operational for at least 19 months. One fraud ring launched 1,567 different betting accounts using stolen information and eventually wagered over $229,000 through BetMGM platforms. 

Two additional rings would total $895,092 and $867,910 of combined wagering, respectively, having used 119 and 304 different betting accounts with fraudulent personal information. 

While the final fraud ring identified by the PGCB used 34 different betting accounts and wagered a combined $14,598, the accounts remained active for approximately 34 months before being shut down.

Along with the September 23 enforcement action, the PGCB also placed 10 individuals on its involuntary exclusion lists, which bans those included from gaming in a casino, via an online betting site or at a video gaming terminal location. 

The regulator reported Pennsylvania’s total gaming activity for August on September 17, as revenue reached $569.7m but fell 2.2% year-over-year. 

Retail slot machines accounted for the most revenue of any vertical with $213.9m but decreased 1.3%, followed by iGaming slots in Pennsylvania which drove $195.2m and managed to increase 8.8%.