{"id":4059,"date":"2026-09-10T15:52:35","date_gmt":"2026-09-10T15:52:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bettingjobs.com\/?p=4059"},"modified":"2026-09-23T15:52:43","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T15:52:43","slug":"witness-for-the-prosecution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bettingjobs.com\/bettingjobs-complianceandmore-partnerships\/witness-for-the-prosecution\/","title":{"rendered":"Witness for the prosecution"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>It\u2019s a little too neat:<\/strong> A report commissioned by Evolution itself has corroborated key allegations about the live casino supplier\u2019s exposure to prohibited gambling markets, handing Playtech potentially significant support in the long-running legal battle over the Black Cube investigation.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The confidential report by Spectrum Gaming was made public in a New Jersey state court on Tuesday after Evolution sought to keep it under wraps.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Too tidy: <\/strong>According to the <em>Financial Times<\/em>, Spectrum found that Evolution generated revenue from operators making its games available in markets where online gambling was prohibited, including Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Spectrum said it was able to \u201cspecifically corroborate\u201d Black Cube\u2019s findings that Evolution games were played in those jurisdictions, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/ef63744c-ab6f-48ad-980b-010bd7c677af?syn-25a6b1a6=1\">the paper reported<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Spectrum also identified \u201csignificant\u201d deficiencies in the supplier\u2019s compliance arrangements.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>And altogether too symmetrical: <\/strong>The report does not validate the entirety of Black Cube\u2019s case. Spectrum did not find evidence supporting allegations that Evolution had operated in US-sanctioned jurisdictions such as Syria and Iran.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>But the document appears to substantiate the investigation\u2019s central contention that Evolution\u2019s products were reaching prohibited markets while the supplier exercised insufficient control over the customer-facing operators distributing them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>That\u2019s what\u2019s wrong with it:<\/strong> Spectrum was retained by Evolution in 2021 to investigate the claims made in Black Cube\u2019s dossier. Its provenance therefore gives the findings particular significance: this was not another report commissioned by an opponent, but Evolution\u2019s own response to the allegations.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Spectrum found Evolution \u201cdoes not take any proactive steps\u201d to ensure customer-facing gambling operators using its products \u201care complying with the terms of the contracts.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>It also found that Evolution had accepted wagers in \u201cvirtual currency\u201d in circumstances that should \u201ctrigger enhanced due diligence.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>The supplier had received revenue from operators offering its games in grey markets including Hong Kong and Singapore.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>We\u2019ve disposed of the gallows:<\/strong> Perhaps most damagingly, Spectrum concluded Evolution had not \u201ctaken any remedial action since the allegations of wrongdoing surfaced\u201d to block the sites or jurisdictions concerned, or to enforce its contracts with the relevant customers.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The report described the compliance issues as \u201cproblematic\u201d and said they placed Evolution \u201cin a precarious situation with law enforcement officials.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>But there\u2019s still that banana peel somewhere:<\/strong> Playtech seized on the disclosure, arguing it explained why Evolution had attempted to keep the report confidential despite presenting Spectrum\u2019s work publicly as vindication of its practices.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cNow that the Spectrum report is publicly available, it is clear both why (it) has become so important in the US litigation \u2013 and why Evolution fought so hard to keep it confidential,\u201d Playtech said in a stock exchange statement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Evolution had argued that disclosure could reveal proprietary information and undermine its competitive position. It declined to comment to the <em>FT<\/em> following publication.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Under somebody\u2019s foot: <\/strong>There remain important limits to the report\u2019s findings. Spectrum did not substantiate the accusations involving Iran and Syria. Playtech said the consultancy was unable \u201cto confirm or refute\u201d some other allegations because Evolution had not supplied all the information requested.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>According to Playtech, the missing material included data needed to establish whether gaming sessions occurred in Iran, Syria and Sudan, as well as revenue reports covering those jurisdictions.<\/li>\n<li>A lack of information is not proof that Evolution operated in sanctioned countries. Nor does Spectrum\u2019s corroboration of activity elsewhere establish the accuracy of every claim, recording or conclusion produced by Black Cube.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Waiting like a hangman on the scaffold:<\/strong> It does, however, make it difficult to characterize the Spectrum exercise as an unqualified exoneration. The document independently confirms weaknesses involving prohibited markets, customer monitoring and contractual enforcement, even as it leaves the most serious sanctions allegations unsupported or unresolved.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Like a drowning man clutching at a razor blade:<\/strong> The disclosure of the Spectrum report follows on from the news of Evolution\u2019s \u00a34.75m settlement of a UK Gambling Commission licence review in July.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>That case primarily concerned Evolution content being offered to British consumers by two unlicensed operators across six websites.<\/li>\n<li>Evolution said the operators had breached its supply terms and \u201cactively evaded\u201d its restrictions. It terminated both relationships and introduced enhanced ring-fencing and other controls.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Evolution stressed that the 18-month review found no wider pattern of unlicensed access in the UK.<\/li>\n<li>CEO Martin Carlesund said it was \u201cnot acceptable\u201d that the sites had offered Evolution games and that the company did not want traffic from unlicensed operators.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>That will be all, Frau Helm: <\/strong>Evolution brought its defamation claim against law firm Calcagni &amp; Kanefsky in 2021 after the Black Cube-derived allegations were submitted anonymously to the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The company alleges the claims were false and precipitated a fall in its share price.<\/li>\n<li>Black Cube was added as a defendant last year.<\/li>\n<li>Evolution subsequently said it would seek to add Playtech after the London-listed supplier was revealed as the client that paid Black Cube more than \u00a31.8m, but that request was denied.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Playtech lost a third of its market value in a single day when its involvement became public last October.<\/li>\n<li>Evolution accused its competitor of going to \u201cextraordinary lengths\u201d to damage its business and reputation.<\/li>\n<li>Playtech denied orchestrating a smear campaign, saying it had acted on credible and repeated compliance concerns.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/complianceandmore.substack.com\/p\/witness-for-the-prosecution\">Like what you are reading? CLICK here to read the FULL article!<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s a little too neat: A report commissioned by Evolution itself has corroborated key allegations about the live casino supplier\u2019s exposure to prohibited gambling markets, handing Playtech potentially significant support in the long-running legal battle over the Black Cube investigation. The confidential report by Spectrum Gaming was made public in a New Jersey state court&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":4062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Witness for the prosecution - BettingJobs - Compliance and More","_seopress_titles_desc":"Evolution\u2019s confidential review hands Playtech ammunition in the Black Cube dispute. 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