Lately, everyone seems to be discussing Source of Wealth requests from their favourite online Gambling sites. There is no exception for online bingo players. In this article, we will try to explain how these regulations impact the average online gambler.
What is Source of Wealth?
Many business people will be used to source of wealth requests for their various dealings with financial institutions. Source of Wealth refers to the request for documentation to show how you are funding your betting, casino or online bingo account. This can be provided in the form of recent payslips from your employer, bank account deposits or similar details. For some players, these requests seem too intrusive. However, if is necessary to protect operators against the use of illegally gained funds at their site. The most important point to note is that the operator can lose their gambling license and the ability to serve you as a customer if they do not do these checks. For example, Paddy Power Betfair was fined £2.2 million for taking bets with stolen money. When it comes to online gambling it can be even more difficult to monitor the source of wealth and therefore operators must apply caution to understanding your source of wealth.
Are source of Wealth requests from an online gambling operator good for me?
Yes, there are a number of benefits for online bingo players, casino players and sports bettors. As per the gambling commission regulations all online gambling operators must ensure that they;
- Protect players being harmed or exploited by online gambling. Problem gamblers can be identified quickly. In a recent case, a customer with a gambling problem spent over £100,000 on gambling without being checked. Had that player been checked for Source of Wealth then the identify of the player could have been found by the operator and measures could have been taken to stop the player.
- Prevent gambling with the proceeds of crime. There are so many cases in the UK where a player has used ill-gotten funds in order to fund gambling for many reasons. This is breaking the Proceeds of Crime Act in the UK.
- Make sure that their business is conducted in a fair and open way. The UK Gambling Commission gives a great insight into how to POCA Act is covered in online gambling.
So, you can rest assured that if the operator takes your money seriously that they will take other monies seriously and you will not end up at a site which has bad practices and may face being forced out of business.
What does this mean for the ordinary player?
To be honest it means nothing much for you. If you are depositiing your own legally gotten money you should not be worried about Source of Wealth Checks. You personal and financial data are safe with the online gambling operator. For the majority of people Source of wealth checks will go along way toward helping people be more safe playing online.
