UKGC Open Banking Pilot: The Future of Gambling Affordability
The topic of online gambling affordability is gaining more traction with major regulators like the UKGC. The 2005 Gambling Act is under revision, setting a course for action in enabling more sustainable gambling.
Pilot programs like the one discussed at the IAGR 2024 Conference have therefore been a matter of discussion. We’ll lead you through the main findings.
Key Findings from the UKGC's Open Banking Pilot
The UK Gambling Commission has always been striving to provide players with better and safer gaming conditions. But the implementation of Open Banking turned the tables around as it allowed more operational control and better insight into players’ spending habits.
Under the proposed Pilot, the Commission has been exploring the possibility of cross-referencing banking data across multiple platforms. Surveys have shown that most players use multiple platforms for gambling online, so the Open Banking system allows the Commission’s licensees to share spending information and work together.
As a consequence, operators can gain insight into possibly problematic behaviour of players who are spending more than they can afford to. This way, they can apply certain limits and restrictions to ensure every player is gambling responsibly and within limits. All these details will determine spending thresholds that players won’t be able to go beyond, especially focusing on the most vulnerable group of players aged between 18 and 24 years.
How Open Banking Enhances Affordability Checks
According to the UKGC’s Pilot, affordability checks have already started in 2024, mainly focusing on customers who spend more than £500 per month in online casino deposits. However, instead of focusing on a single platform, Open Banking allows the authority to check the players’ activity across all regulated UK online casinos.
This way, it allows for players with total deposits going over £500 per month to undergo affordability checks, and not just those who make a deposit on a single platform. As of 2025, these test runs should be concluded, so the Pilot will turn into an actual assessment of 80% of the UK’s high-spending accounts.
Conclusion
Collaborative efforts of the Commission, its licensees, and credit agencies all lead to a single cause – creating a safer gambling environment. So far, we know that casinos with fast payouts won’t be the only ones included in the Open Banking assessment. All UKGC casinos will, and the preliminary findings should soon lead us to valuable insights.