Barclays, one of the UK’s biggest banks, has introduced a 72-hour cooling-off period for their gambling control tool. 

If customers switch off their ability to spend on gambling, they will now have to wait 72 before they can make a transaction. 

The tool, which was originally introduced back in December 2018, is reported to have been used 187,000 times since the COVID-19 lockdown started. It also gives customers the ability to set spending limits, and can be used for other spending, like at supermarkets and restaurants too. 

Commenting on the news, managing director at Barclays, Sian McIntyre, said:

“Customer feedback on our gambling control showed us there was more we could do to help and we’ve worked closely with them to design the solution.”

While GamCare CEO, Anna Hemmings, added:

“The ability to block gambling transactions through your bank card or app is incredibly helpful to those struggling to control their gambling, and is ideally used together with other practical tools such as self-exclusion, blocking software, and specialist support and treatment around the issue.”

AYO.NEWS says:

With a return to total national lockdowns looking increasingly likely (and already confirmed in Israel), even before the full economic and social impact from the first lockdowns has been felt, it seems inevitable that the world is about to witness an economic calamity on an unprecedented scale – with mass unemployment, homelessness, and desperation. 

Given this, it is more important than ever for banks to offer their customers ways to control their spending, so we expect more to follow Barclay’s lead over the coming months. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

Authorities in the US state of Texas have issued Emergency Cease and Desist Orders against two alleged crypto scams. 

Last week, the Texas Securities Commissioner, Travis J. Iles, entered the orders against Forex Birds and Pek Universe – allegedly operated by Kumar Babu Bondesi and Darwin eric Balusek, a.k.a, the “Bitcoin Pope.”

Bondesi and Balusek are accused of fraudulent securities offerings tied to foreign exchange (forex) and cryptocurrencies. The Texas State Securities Board (TSSB) is threatening the operators with $10K fines and up to ten years in prison. 

Apparently, Forex Birds, which is operating from London and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, has been promising investors up to 11% returns on deposits up to $1m USD, and has been fraudulently claiming to be registered with several European, Caribbean, and Australian regulators. 

Pek Universe, which is operating out of West Perth, Australia, is also alleged to be promoting a fraudulent crypto program, promising a 2% daily return for 30 days. 

The TSSB also details that the both the Forex Birds and Pek Universe websites list fake boards of directors, with photographs lifted from other sites.

Though neither of the schemes are registered in, or operating out of Texas, the orders say they have been targeting Texan residents through an advertisement in the general community section of the Craigslist website targeting Dallas. 

And, if Bondesi and Balusek think they are untouchable, they might want to refer to Mirror Trading International – a multi-level crypto scam operating out of South Africa – which the TSSB nevertheless managed to get shut down in July 2020. 

AYO.NEWS says:

It really is hard to believe that operators of these blatant scams think they can still get away with such practices, shamelessly creating fraudulent boards of directors and claiming to be registered with regulators when they aren’t. Though the $10K fine probably won’t phase Bondesi and Balusek, the prospect of a 10 year stretch in a Texas state penitentiary might do! 

Staying with crypto scams, just last month the operators of AirBit Club, and an attorney, were charged with fraud and money laundering by authorities in New York. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, home to nearly 50 million people, has banned all online gambling. 

According to the state’s Minister of Transport, Information, and PR, the Council of Minister have agreed to amend the 1974 Gambling Act to implement the blanket ban, in order to protect young people and prevent gambling addiction. 

Earlier this year, the state’s president, Somu Veerraju, had called for iGaming to be banned, citing financial hardship among many of the state’s citizens, and the potential for problem gambling. 

Apparently, anyone caught breaking the new ban could face a year in jail – and that’s for first time offenders. Repeat offenders could face double that, and other penalties. 

So far, the national government of India has not involved itself with gambling regulation, with the country’s 29 states left to come up with their own rules and regulations. The only exception is that ‘public gambling houses’ are prohibited under the 1867 Public Gambling Act. 

The Lok Sabha (parliament) has been discussing the possibility of introducing a new centralised federal gambling framework, but so far MP’s have been split about what form they should take, and how far they should go. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Following just days after the Indian government banned over 100 Chinese apps, including the hugely popular PUBG Mobile – the backbone of the Indian esports scene – losing a market the size of Andhra Pradesh is going to be a bitter blow to those operators with Indian ambitions. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has suspended the B2C gaming service license of Lucky Dino Gaming. 

Lucky Dino Gaming, which operates Olaspill.com, Casinojefe.com, Luckydino.com, and Kalevalakasino.com, has been ordered to halt all online gambling operations in Malta, including registering new users and accepting deposits, with immediate effect. 

The MGA said that Lucky Dino breached regulation 9 (1) (C) of the country’s Compliance and Enforcement Regulations. Specifically the company failed to file certain key function documentation, and failed to inform the MGA when it added content from new game providers. 

Lucky Dino Gaming must continue to allow registered players access to their accounts for the purposes of withdrawing funds. The company may be able to appeal the suspension.

Staying with the MGA, last week the regulator announced it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with its Dutch counterpart, in an effort to improve cooperation, combat criminality, ensure fair and transparent gaming, and promote social responsibility.

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Police in South Korea have reportedly raided the offices of Bithumb, the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. 

According to local news publication Seoul Shinmun, a specialist intelligence crime unit from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, swooped on the company’s office in the Gangnam District of the city on 2 September, conducting a search and seizure operation. 

The police raid is thought to be connected to the ongoing investigation of Lee Jung Hoon, chairman of the board at Bithumb Korea and Bithumb Holdings, for his part in the BXA token fraud. Newsis is also reporting that police are investigating whether Bithumb has violated South Korea’s Foreign Exchange Transaction Act and Capital Market Act.

BXA was issued by the Blockchain Exchange Alliance (BXA) and Singapore-based BXA Consortium, and promoted as ‘Bithumb’s native token’, but it is now being alleged it was actually a sophisticated scam that saw investors lose around 30 billion won (approx. $25m USD). 

Bithumb is currently the world’s ninth biggest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of average trading volume, and is thought to be planning an initial public offering (IPO). 

Coinbit, South Korea’s third largest crypto exchange was also recently raided by police investigating market manipulation.

AYO.NEWS says:

Needless to say this could end up being very damaging for Bithumb and its IPO ambitions. Given the exchange’s global profile, it’s also got the potential to heap a lot of negative publicity on the crypto industry as a whole. Obviously, it wouldn’t be appropriate to comment on the details of the case, but we’ll be watching…

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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Tezos finally settles a class action lawsuit for $25 million USD, bringing to end a 3-year litigation process. 

In its 2017 ICO, Tezos, which had developed a proof-of-stake blockchain, raised a staggering $232 million. However, in December 2017, a group of private plaintiffs launched legal action against Kathleen and Arthur Breitman, founders of Tezos, plus the Tezos Foundation, accusing the project’s ICO of being an unlicensed securities offering.

Though both parties had agreed on the settlement in California back in March, it has now been approved by a Federal judge. 

The settlement will see the $25m shared out among all those who participated in Tezos’ 2017 initial coin offering (ICO) between 1-13 July and sold their XTZ for a loss prior to 25 November 2019, did not sell their tokens before 25 November, or have lost their passwords and are unable to access their XTZ altogether.

However, the defendants, Tezos’ founding family, and anyone who held a position within the Tezos Foundation, or any firm with a “controlling interest” in the ICO, are excluded from the settlement. 

In addition to the settlement of $25, Tezos has been ordered to pay legal fees worth around a third of the settlement, plus the defendants are required to pay an additional $203K of legal costs separately. 

As part of the settlement, the plaintiffs have forfeited their rights to make any future claim against Tezos or any of the defendants. 

Parties have until 16 October to file claims in the settlement.

AYO.NEWS says:

Though this settlement has been on the cards for months now, federal approval means Tezos can finally get things sorted and put an end to a 3-year headache, and concentrate on innovating and building for the future. 

Other blockchain and crypto projects are not so lucky, and can look forward to years of legal wrangling, and possibly expensive settlements, legal costs, and maybe even worse. 

For example, in June Bittrex and Poloniex were dragged into a class-action lawsuit alleging serious market manipulation during the 2017 bull run. While, in May, seven crypto firms, including Binance, BitMEX, Block.one, and the Tron Foundation, were hit by lawsuits filed in New York. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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