Co-founder of Gamban Suggests Exemption of Horse Racing from Financial Limit checkings
Horse Racing May Escape UK Affordability Checks
ambitiously lobbying for an exemption, the co-founder of Gamban—a firm specializing in gambling-blocking software—is advocating for horse racing to bypass affordability checks in the UK.
Under current regulations, bettors who exceed a monthly deposit threshold are subject to background credit checks. These checks, implemented in 2024 as a pilot and set to be fully adopted in February 2025, are aimed at assessing a gambler's financial stability for continued deposits with gambling sites.
The horse racing sector has been vocal about its dissatisfaction with these checks, asserting they unfairly target the industry and should instead focus on high-risk gambling activities such as online slots and casino games.
According to Matt Zarb-Cousin, the co-founder of Gamban, these checks lack proper targeting. Complaining about the industry's unsuccessful attempts to separate itself from online casinos, Zarb-Cousin argued that this proximity is the root cause of affordability checks for horse racing.
The UK's Jockey Club, a major horse racing trade organization, has estimated that the checks will cost the industry over £250 million ($317 million) over the next five years. Moreover, since their introduction, there are signs suggesting an increase in riskier forms of gambling like online roulette and slots, while activities such as sports betting and horse racing saw a decline.
Zarb-Cousin denounced the industry's execution of these checks and called for more defined rules to govern their implementation. If racing could separate from current online casino and slots operations, he reasoned, it would evade the situation where it is subjected to affordability checks.
The UK Gambling Commission is currently conducting a pilot for financial risk assessments, with a focus on online gambling. The results from this trial could potentially impact future policies affecting horse racing. Inconsistencies in credit reference agencies have raised concerns about the feasibility of implementing these checks effectively.
- Matt Zarb-Cousin, co-founder of Gamban, is advocating for horse racing to escape affordability checks in the UK, arguing that these checks lack proper targeting and are unfairly targeting the industry.
- The horse racing sector has asserted that affordability checks should focus on high-risk gambling activities such as online slots and casino games, instead of targeting the industry.
- If racing could separate from current online casino and slots operations, according to Zarb-Cousin, it would evade the situation where it is subjected to affordability checks.
- There are signs suggesting an increase in riskier forms of gambling like online roulette and slots, while activities such as sports betting and horse racing saw a decline, raising concerns about the effectiveness of affordability checks in the UK.
