Gambling operator Playtech’s former customer-facing UK operations are under fire for allegedly contributing to a former VIP customer’s suicide.

On Wednesday, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) released the findings of its investigation into PT Entertainment Services (PTES), a Playtech offshoot that formerly operated the TitanBet and Winner brands in the UK (and still does outside the UK).

The probe was launched in March 2019 after the UKGC received communications from the family of a 25-year-old UK man who committed suicide in April 2017. The man, identified by UK media as Sheffield resident Chris Bruney, held accounts at both TitanBet and Winner.

The UKGC probe identified “serious systemic failings” in PTES’ social responsibility and anti-money laundering (AML) processes, as well as “more general failings” in the operator’s interaction with its high-spending customers. During 2016-17, PTES sent responsible gambling emails to only 0.26% of its customers, a figure the regulator called “exceptionally low.”