Pokerstars owner Flutter Entertainment has agreed a settlement of $4 million with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission following allegations of foreign bribery laws in relation to payments made to Russia-based consultants.
The original allegations were made against former Pokerstars owner the Stars Group which was acquired by Flutter in 2020.
According to the SEC’s investigation, from 2015 to 2020 the Stars Group had paid approximately $8.9 million to Russian consultants as it lobbied for the legalization of poker in Russia. The SEC believed that the payments were a violation of international foreign bribery laws and brought charges against the company.
The charges resulted from the discovery that some of the funds paid by the Stars Group had been paid out to local government officials by the consultants working on the company’s behalf.
However, the SEC announced yesterday that a settlement had been agreed in the case and that Flutter had neither denied nor accepted the charges brought against the Stars Group.
In statement released following the SEC announcement, a Flutter spokesperson said:
“This is a legacy issue, related to a period prior to Flutter’s ownership of the Stars Group. Following our acquisition of TSG, we made significant changes to implement a framework of controls in line with Flutter’s existing standards.”
In its announcement, the SEC acknowledged Flutter’s cooperation in the investigation and its efforts to ensure that such incidents would not be allowed to occur in the future.
Following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Flutter has withdrawn from Russia.
Based in London, Natasha is a former sports journalist with experience working for some of the biggest athletes & brands in the world of sports and iGaming.