Michigan regulators told three operators to stop illegally doing business in Wolverine State.
The Michigan Gaming Control Board sent cease-and-desist letters to PredictionStrike, Stake.us, and VGW. The MGCB said all three gaming companies responded with steps to prevent Michigan residents from gambling on their websites.
“Gambling regulations are in place for a reason, and illegal gambling operations are not welcome in Michigan,” MGCB Executive Director Henry Williams said.
“We do not want businesses who skirt the law having access to Michigan citizens and leaving them vulnerable because they are playing on unregulated sites that leave them with no recourse, and that siphon funds away from communities because they are not paying taxes like a regulated, legal gambling establishment would.”
Breaking Michigan law
Regulators told all three that they violated the Lawful Gaming Act, the Lawful Sports Betting Act, the Michigan Gaming Control and Revenue Act, and the Michigan Penal Code.
PredictionStrike has been offering sports betting and gaming while Stake.us is an unlicensed online lottery and raffle game. VGW was charged with conducting illegal gambling by offering a game that involved wagering monetary value for a chance to win something of monetary value.
Big business
Despite 38 U.S. jurisdictions offering legal sports betting and/or iGaming, bettors nationwide are still using illegal or unregulated and unlicensed gaming sites.
An estimated 201 million visits to these sites were made in the first three months of football season, causing many legal sports betting states like Michigan to crack down on violators.
The Wolverine State, which offers both online and retail sports betting and iGaming, has plenty of incentive to protect its residents from unregulated gaming, but also its revenue.
The MGCB reported a record-high $613 million sports betting handle in December, setting new marks in each of the last three months.
Gross gaming revenue from online casinos generated $181 million in the final month of the year, and the Wolverine State collected more than $370 million in tax revenue from operators in 2023.
