Evolution Gaming has come to an agreement with the UK Gambling Commission, settling a regulatory matter stemming from an investigation into its black market operations that began in December 2024. As part of this settlement, Evolution will pay £4.75 million. The investigation uncovered that content from Evolution was accessible through two operators operating on six websites that provided services to UK consumers without the necessary licensing.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Evolution noted that these unlicensed operators had "actively evaded restrictions in place at the time." Furthermore, the company emphasized that during the 18-month investigation, no significant patterns of unlicensed access to its content in the UK were found.
Evolution affirmed its commitment to cooperation with the Commission, highlighting that it consistently engages with regulatory bodies. The statement explained, "The company routinely takes technical, legal, and commercial action to identify, address, and prevent unauthorized access to its content." Upon discovering the issue, Evolution terminated its commercial relationships with the two operators immediately.
In light of the Commission's investigation starting in 2024, Evolution initiated ring-fencing measures throughout Europe to prevent its games from being supplied by any unlicensed entities.
These measures impacted the company's profitability in 2025. According to its Q1/25 financial results, Evolution reported a 5.4% drop in profit to €254.7 million ($289.7 million), despite achieving a group net revenue of €521 million, which rose by 3.9% compared to the previous year.
Carlesund, in the Q1 earnings report, remarked, "On top of what we have already done in the UK to meet regulatory requirements, we have taken proactive and self-initiated actions in February to ring-fence additional regulated markets in Europe." He also noted that the revenue effects varied, with significant declines in regions where market channelization was low.
In February, when revealing its full year 2025 results, Carlesund expressed confidence that Evolution has implemented the "strongest ring-fencing measures in place among all [the sector’s] suppliers." However, he attributed the company's losses to challenges in regulated markets. Evolution has adjusted its strategy to focus more on the Americas, anticipating growth in this sector, which it describes as offering a "more stable environment."
Initially, Evolution expected the Commission's review to conclude by the end of 2025. During a Q3 earnings call last October, Carlesund commented on the timeline regarding the UK Gambling Commission, stating, "When it comes to the UK Gambling Commission timeline, unfortunately I don’t have any other information. It’s in the hands of the regulator and our estimation is that it will be by the end of this year."
