CRYPTO CASINO
of TrainwrecksTV or Trainwreck. He started streaming slots content on video platform Twitch in 2021, quickly building up a large following. Within weeks he had 77,000 concurrent viewers racking up over 600,000 hours of combined watch time for slots on his channel per day. He was quickly offered a sponsorship deal by Stake that saw Trainwreck gambling US$ millions almost daily on the offshore crypto casino. 9 We cannot tell how many customers Trainwreck helped sign up or where they came from, but we get some insight into the value he provided for Stake from the amount he claimed he was paid by the company. In an interview in 2022, Trainwreck revealed that, for an 18-month sponsorship, Stake paid him US$360mn. 10 Eventually, Twitch decided to ban content promoting crypto casinos. In response to this move and other advertising restrictions, Stake’s parent company Easygo launched kick.com, a rival service, as well as a sports TV channel. The rise of crypto casinos and the influencer marketing contributing to their growth seems to have flown under the radar of regulators, although to be fair to them, there are limits as to what they can do. In the UK and US, gambling on offshore unregulated websites via a VPN is not illegal. Offshore operators, however, may still be committing an offence although enforcement is thorny. While the promotion of illegal gambling is an offence in the UK, Stake could argue that its content is not intended for British audiences placing it outside the reach of the UK Gambling Commission. This seems to have been recognized by the Commission itself who say that while it issued 287 cease and desist notices to providers “accepting and advertising crypto as a deposit method in the UK” in 2024, “the responsibility for enforcing laws in other jurisdictions rests with authorities in those jurisdictions”. 11
What’s wrong with crypto casino? It goes without saying that a completely unregulated crypto casino, with no spending limits, affordability checks or responsible gaming measures in place, is an unhealthy place for gamblers. It is particularly dangerous for underage or problem gamblers, but some claim the dangers go much further. Campaigners, like Deal Me Out CEO Jordan Lea, warn that the cryptocurrency environment brings added hazards. Crypto, whose value is inherently volatile, compounds the risks, they say. When the value of the currency goes up, gamblers are tempted to see this as passive income they can bet with. When it falls, they gamble more to chase their losses. 12 Matthew Showell says that whilst influencer marketing is extremely effective at bringing in players this carries risks. “Slots content often doesn’t reflect reality and it normalizes risky behavior, with huge bets and long sessions, focusing only on wins while minimizing or ignoring losses. Influencers are gambling with money provided by the casino, but they don’t have an obligation to disclose that to viewers. Some promote sites that don’t have good KYC or other security protocols. And since this content is on social media, it reaches all kinds of people, even in jurisdictions where gambling is supposed to be tightly controlled.” 13 As well as social media channels, several crypto casinos are using sports sponsorship to target players. It is here that things may be changing, in the UK, at least. The British government announced in 2024 that it intended to take a harder line with white label gambling operations. 14 This process has continued with departure of white label giant TGP Europe in May 2025 just the latest exit from UK market. It has also cast a spotlight on a number of questionable practices involving English Premier League clubs and Asian crypto casinos. TGP is behind
9 https://www.wired.com/story/twitch-streamers-crypto-gambling-boom/ 10 https://www.tiktok.com/@beforetheywerefamous/video/7157080132274965765 11 https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/licensees-and-businesses/guide/page/emerging-money-laundering-and-terrorist-financ- ing-risks-from-april-2025 12 https://www.dealmeout.org/blackmarketreport
13 Matthew Showell, CEO of Snap Call Media speaking at the IMGL Spring Conference 2025 in Vancouver 14 https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/baroness-twycross-speech-at-gambleaware-annual-conference
IMGL MAGAZINE | JUNE 2025
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