Regulatory concerns are piling up around the Entain betting group. After being sanctioned by the British regulator, Ladbrokes's parent company is the subject of an anti-money laundering investigation in Australia.

Britain's Entain is facing another scandal after the record punitive fine of 17 million pounds (19.6 million euros) imposed on him last month by the Paris Commission in the United Kingdom. Australia announced on Monday the launch of an investigation into a subsidiary of the group, to determine whether its activities were in compliance with the country's anti-money laundering and terrorist financing legislation.

The decision is the result of an extensive surveillance campaign against businesses in the bookmaker sector, explained the Australian Center for Reporting and Analysis of transactions (Austrac). For its part, the British regulator had identified “unacceptable breaches of anti-money laundering and betting security regulations”, which includes the fight against gambling addiction. In the event of a repeat offence, the group could lose its license to operate in the UK.

Through its sports betting brands Ladbrokes and Sportingbet, the group holds around 15% of the Australian online betting market. This activity took advantage of the closure of physical stores for nearly two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.