Lithuania’s Gambling Supervision Authority, or GSA, has fined casino operator JSC Tete-a-tete €341,049 for breaking anti money laundering rules, also called AML. The fine was announced on 18 December after the regulator carried out an unscheduled special inspection.

The inspection looked at how the company followed the country’s Law on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing. Under this law, gambling companies must constantly monitor customer activity, check that betting matches known income, and ensure that gambling funds come from legal sources.

The regulator said these rules mean operators must act quickly when risks appear, rather than wait for problems to get worse.

Failures in customer checks

During the inspection, the GSA found that Tete-a-tete did not properly check where one customer’s funds came from for a long period, even though the law required it. The company only later asked the customer to provide income documents for the years 2021 to 2023.

By that time, the customer was no longer depositing new money and was only gambling with funds already in the account. As a result, the customer did not provide any further explanation about the source of the money.

Tete-a-tete then ended the remote gambling contract, citing the lack of proof about the origin of funds. The customer complained to the GSA, which found that the termination was not legally justified. The regulator said the company had failed to properly monitor the business relationship and had wrongly used its earlier oversight gaps as a reason to end the contract.

Operator avoids maximum sanction

The inspection showed that the operator broke two parts of the AML law. One of these, failing to continuously monitor customers, is considered a serious or gross violation in Lithuania.

A breach like this can carry a fine of up to €1.1 million. While the GSA did not impose the maximum penalty, it emphasized how important regular monitoring is in preventing money laundering and terrorist financing.

The authority said that closely watching customer behaviour is a key way to protect the gambling industry from illegal activity.

GSA reinforces compliance message

When announcing the fine, the regulator reminded gambling and lottery companies that it regularly holds training sessions to help them understand and follow the rules.

The GSA has also issued mandatory instructions and provides general and individual consultations to guide companies on how to comply with the law. These measures are meant to prevent the kinds of compliance failures seen in this case.

The authority also noted that Tete-a-tete has the legal right to appeal the decision if it disagrees with the ruling. This means the company can formally challenge the fine or the findings, and the case could be reviewed again before a final outcome is confirmed.