CG Technology Swerves License Revocation With $2 Million Fine After Regulators Make Company Sweat

Posted on: November 19, 2018, 03:46h. 

Last updated on: November 19, 2018, 04:10h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.

Nevada sports book operator CG Technology — formerly Cantor Gaming — breathed a sigh of relief on Thursday when the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) accepted the company’s offer of $2 million to settle serious compliance failures but left its gaming license intact.

CG Technology
What were the odds of that? CG Technology gets away with a $2 million fine after sweating the revocation of its license by the NGC. It’s the sixth-highest such fine ever imposed. In five years, CGT has also paid the first and seventh-highest. (Image: ThoughtCo)

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the NGC took two hours to unanimously accept the operator’s revised offer after initially rejecting a $250,000 proposal by the company in August.

The payment will settle the latest episode of rule violations in CGT’s long history of upsetting Nevada gaming regulators.

The company has now paid three of the top ten-highest penalties ever imposed on gaming companies in Nevada, and that includes the number-one spot: a $5.5 million fine in 2014 to settle charges that included illegal gambling and money laundering.

CGT was fined a further $22.5 million by the federal government over the same incident.

Three Strikes, Not Out

CGT operates sports books at major Strip casinos, including The Cosmopolitan, The Hard Rock, The Palms, The Tropicana and The Venetian. This was the third time the company had been hauled in front of Nevada regulators in five years. The NGC had made it clear that this could be a case of three strikes and you’re out and was prepared to make CGT sweat.

Its most recent infractions include accepting bets from outside the state on its Nevada-only mobile sports betting app, taking wagers after events had finished, making incorrect payouts to 1,483 customers, and “misconfiguring” a satellite sports betting station for a Super Bowl party at an unnamed Las Vegas casino.

The regulator broke with protocol in August when it rejected the $250,000 settlement that had been recommended for approval by the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB).

It was the first time in 10 years that the NGC had rejected an NGCB recommendation in a disciplinary matter.

Appetites Satisfied

In doing so, NGC Chairman Tony Alamo said his comfort level with CGT was “zero” and he had “zero appetite to move forward with this settlement.”

Two million dollars helped Alamo regain his appetite.

Under the new settlement, CGT has agreed to hire a corporate social responsibility officer, who will report to the CEO. The NGCB has also recommended that the company scrap “every component” of its wagering technology and partner with a third-party provider within the next six months.

Of the $2 million payment, $1.75 million will go to the NGC and $250,000 to the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling.

“We are satisfied with the resolution agreed to today by the commission,” CGT CEO Parikshat Khanna said in an official statement.

“We remain committed to the Nevada sports book business and the long-term partnerships we have established with some of the finest resort operators in the world. Additionally, we look forward to the growth prospects of the industry nationwide,” Khanna added.