Details coming to light
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement has fined PointsBet over three different sportsbook-related infractions. This fine was officially handed out on August 23 and was not publicly announced until Tuesday. The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office released the details following a request by the Associated Press.
will see it pay a $25,000 fine
The state’s gambling regulator reached a settlement with the sportsbook operator that will see it pay a $25,000 fine. All of these infractions occurred before Fanatics’ bid to acquire PointsBet’s US operations in the summer for $225m.
Lacking sturdy systems
One of the infractions relates to PointsBet offering pre-match wagering markets on games that had already started back in August 2021. A single customer placed bets on these markets, wagering $13,500 in total and generating a $28,275 return. Once the operator discovered the mistake, it voided the bets and returned the stakes to the bettor.
PointsBet explained that the error occurred because it did not have an automated process to review the timeliness and accuracy of all published betting markets. The operator noted that as it offers coverage for so many events, it was not realistic to manually check every single event. PointsBet also said that “an unresolved communication issue” with a third-party provider of data feeds contributed to the matter.
The other two infractions
Another issue was PointsBet taking bets in March 2022 on an in-state college basketball team during the NCAA March Madness tournament. Bettors shouldn’t have been able to bet on games involving St. Peter’s as wagering on local college teams is not allowed under state law. These markets were available for about 55 minutes and two users placed bets worth a total of $60 before they were cancelled. PointsBet attributed human error to causing the issue.
cannot offer wagering markets on events in which people younger than 18 years old are taking part
The third and final infraction saw PointsBet offering betting markets on a League of Legends esports event in October 2021 when one of the players was 17 years old. New Jersey law states that sportsbook operators cannot offer wagering markets on events in which people younger than 18 years old are taking part.
Four bets totaling $1,225 were placed on the competition and later voided. PointsBet said that it failed to verify the ages of all participants before publishing the market. It now has a system in place that makes sure to do so.