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Victoria Gate Casino in Leeds has been shut down after the UK Gambling Commission suspended its license.
Leeds’ Victoria Gate Casino was shut down on Friday (October 31), following an investigation by the Gambling Commission due to concerns about anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing risks. The UKGC has suspended its licence after a compliance assessment found significant failings in the casino’s policies and controls.
The UKGC has deemed Victoria Gate Casino as “unsuitable to carry on the licensed activities”, with the assessment revealing that the operator has “failed to maintain and implement effective anti-money laundering policies, procedures, and controls, as required under the conditions of their licence”. The commission will continue to review the casino’s operation moving forward.
As it stands, the casino has shut down its operations with immediate effect, leaving a notice up at the front of the Leeds establishment stating that the license has been “temporarily suspended”.
“We hope to open and welcome you back very soon,” reads the notice. A message has also been added to the casino’s website. The UKGC has not given any indication of how long the further review will take in its statement.

“These failings are considered significant and represent a serious threat to the licensing objectives, in particular keeping crime out of gambling,” said the UKGC. “We have made it clear to the operator that during the suspension, we expect it to focus on treating consumers fairly and keeping them fully informed of any developments which impact them.”
The importance of anti-money laundering measures
With gambling, especially in physical casinos, being a cash-heavy business, anti-money laundering is a vital measure for any operator. Authorities around the world are typically strict on AML policies, with Australia’s financial watchdog similarly clamping down on inadequate policies earlier this year. Denmark also recently revamped its policies to be in keeping with modern demands.
ReadWrite has contacted Victoria Gate Casino for further comment.
Featured image: Yapp App via Facebook
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Romania’s National Gambling Office has added Polymarket to its blacklist of unauthorized gambling operator websites.
The National Gambling Office (ONJN) added Polymarket to its blacklist as of October 29, meaning it has found that the platofrm has been conducting gambling activities without a license on Romanian territory. This comes after the prediction market saw what the ONJN deemed as “explosive growth” in the build-up to the Romanian election.
Data from Polymarket shows that Romania’s presidential elections saw transactions valued at $600 million, while the Bucharest local elections pulled in a not insubstantial $15 million. As a prediction market, Polymarket allowed users to bet on the outcome of the elections. The use in Romania echoes similar patterns that took place during the US elections.
Polymarket’s status in Romania
The ONJN has classified Polymarket as “a counterparty bet”, arguing that wagers placed on the platform include stakes, future uncertain events, counterparties (meaning users are betting against one another), and terminology on the platform around “placing bets”. In addition, Polymarket does act as an intermediary, taking a commission from placed bets without guaranteeing the odds.
“The platform does not intermediate investments,” stated the ONJGN. “It organizes bets between participants, without a license and without oversight.”
This has led to the ONJN adding Polymarket to its blacklist, reiterating that any form of online gambling must be licensed and supervised in the interest of protecting both users and the states from what it deems “major risks”. The decision is being communicated to internet service providers so that they can take action to block access to the platform for those based in Romania.
“The decision to include Polymarket on the blacklist is not about technology, but about the law,” said Vlad-Cristian Soare, the ONJN President. “Regardless of whether you bet in lei or in crypto, if you stake money on a future outcome, under the conditions of a counterparty bet, we are talking about gambling that must be licensed. ONJN will not allow blockchain to become a cover for illegal betting.”
Polymarket was briefly banned in the US, after the CFTC also determined that its activity constituted unlicensed gambling, as well as similar actions being taken in other countries such as Belgium, France, Poland, Singapore, and Thailand.
Readwrite has reached out to Polymarket for comment.
Featured image: Polymarket
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Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has exposed a potentially serious prediction markets issue through a lighthearted side.
Armstrong closed Coinbase’s quarterly earnings call on Thursday (October 30) with a quickfire list of buzzwords: “Bitcoin, Ethereum, blockchain, staking and Web3.” Rather than being anything actionable for the company, the words were chosen based on what users of prediction market platforms Kalshi and Polymarket had bet would come up during the call.
“I was a little distracted because I was tracking the prediction market about what Coinbase will say on their next earnings call,” Armstrong said in his parting remarks, as reported by Bloomberg. “I just want to add here the words Bitcoin, Ethereum, blockchain, staking, and Web3, to make sure we get those in before the end of the call.”
While seemingly meant in jest, the quip shows how easy it would be for some people to influence what was, in this case, an $84,000 betting market. Prediction markets allow users to bet on niche categories related to any number of topics, including earning call topics and other social or business themes.
At the point where Armstrong was browsing the markets at the end of the call, many wagered terms hadn’t been said – but the CEO could then fulfil the terms of the bet by saying them in rapid succession. Odds shifted and wagers were paid out, in a move that could easily be seen as intentional.
Armstrong made it clear on social media that the line was a spontaneous decision after a link to the markets were shared on Coinbase’s internal messaging system. A Coinbase spokesperson also told Bloomberg that Armstrong’s remarks were “made in a lighthearted, offhand way, referencing online discussion around the earnings call.”
Coinbase employees cannot take part in prediction markets or any related activity involving the company according to its internal policies, the person added, meaning that neither Armstrong nor anyone else could benefit from the prediction markets pool.

lol this was fun – happened spontaneously when someone on our team dropped a link in the chat https://t.co/tQiV3B9jUj
— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) October 31, 2025

What does this mean for prediction markets?
With Kalshi already engaging with the CFTC around regulation, the offhand comment is indicative of where there’s a gap in protecting prediction markets from being abused. Coinbase’s own policy is helpful here, but down the line more official regulations could be required.
Readwrite has reached out to Kalshi and Polymarket for comment.
Featured image: TechCrunch / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0
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