The operator of Kindred Group brand Unibet in France has been fined €800,000 for repeated failures regarding its self-exclusion technology.
The French gambling regulator, L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ), followed up reports that SPS Betting had failed to comply with its self-exclusion obligations.
It was discovered in 2021 that “several thousand” players who had requested self-exclusion for between several weeks and several months “were likely to have been able to play again within a few days.”
It transpired that self-exclusion requests spanning months were “automatically converted” to days, with players seeking 12 months away from gaming only being excluded for 12 days.
The malfunction initially occurred between March 2, 2021, and December 11, 2022, and covered the Unibet app and website on iOS devices.
Despite being fixed by SPS Betting, the issue “reappeared” and affected players on the same operating system from December 29, 2022, and February 2, 2023.
After reviewing the details, the Sanctions Committee of the ANJ met in January 2025 to agree on an €800,000 fine.
“This decision, which is unprecedented in its scope, is a reminder of the Committee’s commitment to penalising operators who fail to meet their obligations to prevent excessive gambling,” the ANJ said.
