In Practise Alleges Evolution of Illegal APAC Wagers

On Friday, an X post confirmed that investment research firm In Practise was getting ready to publish a report concerning Evolution’s operations in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. 

Accordingly, the latter’s share price dropped 9.9%, from SEK1,372.80 ($129.78) to SEK1,237.40 ($116.97).  

The piece of research concerning the world leader in product innovation and advanced IT solutions for video-streamed live casinos will allegedly contain an interview with a former executive of the supplier’s Ezugi subsidiary. 

According to the research firm, the former executive made a series of claims regarding Evolution’s operations in the region.

The report is to be released in the context of the company known for providing “pioneering product innovation and technical solutions for Live Dealer gaming” currently facing a few class action lawsuits alleging the business has failed to reveal its level of regulatory risk to investors.

“We Do Not Sell Our Product to Operators Without a License”

According to a February report from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE), there is no proof that can substantiate the claims that the supplier had sanctioned, advertised, or benefited from content provided by gaming operators who are currently banned under the state’s regulations.

On Saturday, Miami-based law firm Levine Kellogg Lehman Schneider + Grossman published a press release that advertised for lead plaintiffs in an upcoming securities class action.

The suit alleges the supplier’s products were made accessible to companies that did not carry a license in prohibited jurisdictions. 

Evolution has continuously denied these allegations. “We do not sell our product to operators without a license,” stated a spokesperson for the company for NEXT.io.

The company does its business by supplying both licensed business-to-consumer casino operators, which then proceed to supply the games to players, and licensed business-to-business actors, which make the games available to business-to-consumer licensed operators. 

The latter then offers the games to players. The spokesperson also explained the company “demands all B2B operators to perform a robust KYC on their B2C customers” while adding Evolution performs “an abridged due diligence” on the respective sublicensees before giving them the green light. 

In Practise Quotes Ex Business Development Director 

The upcoming APAC report will allegedly include a former business development director’s quotes regarding the numerous “completely unlicensed operators who do not care about obtaining a license” in the region and who continue to operate there. 

According to the same alleged source, while Evolution “cannot engage with them due to their lack of license,” provided they “sign with a licensed aggregator and use the reseller model, they can claim ignorance about where the games end up.”

The same In Practise report alleges that, on the Asian continent, “the prevalence of unlicensed operators that collectively control a significant portion of the market changes how EVO approaches distribution.”

In turn, says the firm, this establishes the business-to-business aggregation mix in the area relative to Europe as well as the “underlying profitability and bargaining power across the value chain.”

Last week, it was announced that Evolution might finally reveal the identity of the currently anonymous company that submitted a report alleging the supplier had been involved in misconduct and had operated in prohibited jurisdictions. 

At the end of January, a class action lawsuit was filed against Evolution by consumer and class action specialists Federman & Sherwood.