UK Gambling Minister Baroness Twycross has formed a specialised Illegal Gambling Taskforce to fend off the black market.
The formulation of the task force comes after years of warning by the regulated industry that black market operators are becoming increasingly prevalent in the UK.
This was raised multiple times during the debate around industry taxes last year, with operators arguing that over-taxation would lead to licenced operators taking measures that could push customers to the black market.
However, when the government ultimately put up taxes from 21% to 40% on online gaming (from April 2026) and gaming in general, except retail, from 15% to 21% (from April 2027), it included a commitment to investing money into combating the black market.
Although the taxes have yet to come into effect, it could be expected that the task force will receive some gambling tax-based backing. The Baroness-led taskforce may be an early fruit of the government’s planned anti-black market labour.
On the Department for Culture, Media and Sport LinkedIn profile, Baroness Twycross said: “Our Taskforce will work together over the next year to ensure that people who wish to gamble can do so safely, with the right protections in place.”
BGC backs task force
Some important details were also shared on LinkedIn by Grainne Hurst, CEO of the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), who was in attendance at the taskforce’s launch event.
Hurst outlined that the government has clearly set out its mission, which apparently involves “uniting key players across the industry and beyond, including tech companies and payment providers.” At this time, however, not much else has been revealed about the initiative.
Other than that, Hurst reminded of the scope of the black market in the UK – with 1.5 million people staking up to £4.3bn on it.
The severity of the problem has also been previously highlighted in reports from various organisations, such as Deal Me Out (DMO), a gambling harm prevention and education organisation.
A substantial survey from April last year drew answers from a UK pool of 1250 children, 300 adults and 10 gambling content creators, finding out that more than £10m has been deposited into the black market by adult consumers alone.
Breaking down the numbers further, £3.6m of the above amount was staked by individuals who are suffering from problem gambling, £1.9m from general consumers, and £5.1m from the 10 content creators – who, surprisingly or not, were paid to market illegal gambling websites.
DMO further states that 67% of respondents told them that they were self-excluded via Gamstop from licensed betting sites – the Ladbrokes, Corals, Paddy Powers and bet365s etc of the UK gaming sector – but continued gambling with black market firms.
Studies like those from DMO, while more limited in scope than those by the government or Gambling Commission, indicate that there is an extensive black market in the UK that requires attention.
Gamstop itself also revealed last year that around one-in-10 self excluded gamblers admit to regularly using offshore, unlicensed ‘non-Gamstop casinos’. This would align with the stat often cited by the BGC and others that around 10% of UK gambling volume takes place within illegal markets.
“While any proposal to work against the harmful black market is obviously welcome, it’s going to be an uphill battle,” the BGC’s Hurst wrote on LinkedIn. “Already the scale of it is huge – 1.5m Brits stake up to £4.3bn on the black market each year.
“Unfortunately, the significant tax rises on our sector will inevitably drive even more consumers out of the regulated market and into the hands of unscrupulous illegal operators.
“They are so incredibly harmful because they have no age checks, no safer gambling tools and no consumer protections. Nonetheless, it was good to see the Government bring people together to get talking about the subject. And to acknowledge the sheer scale of the problems we now face.”
Not everyone is convinced of the extent of black market activity, not necessarily in the UK but across other markets. In the Nordics, where industry cases about the black market are similarly used to argue against stricter regulations and in favour of market liberalisations, academics have doubted the extent of illicit activity.