1 Oct 2026
UK Bookmakers Linked to Offshore Casino Deal Through Content Provider Stake
The Guardian published details on October 1 2026 about a 2022 agreement between Sports Information Services and the Santeda network that routed revenue back to three major UK betting operators through their ownership interests in the content provider and the story draws directly from thousands of files released in the Casino Secrets leak originating with Curaçao regulators. Ladbrokes owned by Entain, William Hill under Evoke ownership, and Betfred each held stakes in SIS and those positions produced dividend payments tied to the Santeda arrangement while separate compliance measures reportedly shielded the operators from day-to-day oversight of the transaction.
Details of the 2022 Agreement
SIS supplied betting data and streaming services to Santeda which operated sites licensed in Curaçao and those platforms faced accusations of directing marketing toward UK players despite domestic restrictions and the arrangement generated substantial income that flowed through to SIS shareholders including the three named British firms. Observers note that the operators maintained internal policies designed to prevent direct knowledge of specific client contracts yet the dividend stream from the Santeda work still reached their balance sheets and the leaked Curaçao files made the connection public for the first time.
Public Statements on Tax and Offshore Risks
The same companies have issued repeated warnings that increases in UK gambling taxation would push customers toward unregulated offshore operators and those statements appeared in regulatory submissions and media commentary over several years yet the SIS dividends tied to the Santeda contract continued during the same period. Researchers tracking the sector point out that the operators positioned themselves as advocates for a tightly controlled domestic market while simultaneously receiving indirect revenue from an offshore network operating under different rules.
The Casino Secrets Leak and Its Scope
The Casino Secrets material consists of internal records from the Curaçao gaming authority and the documents detail licensing arrangements, compliance correspondence, and commercial partnerships involving multiple offshore operators including Santeda and journalists who reviewed the files identified the SIS connection as one thread among many and the reporting focused on how revenue from UK-facing marketing could reach British-licensed companies through intermediary structures. Those who examined the documents found references to the 2022 deal alongside broader patterns of data sharing and marketing activity that targeted restricted markets.
Ownership Structure and Dividend Flow
Entain, Evoke, and Betfred each maintained minority or controlling interests in SIS at the time of the agreement and the content provider earned fees for supplying race and sports data feeds to Santeda sites and those fees translated into dividend distributions once operating costs were covered and the operators have stated that arm's-length governance rules kept commercial decisions at SIS separate from their own boards. The structure allowed the dividend payments to arrive without the parent companies exercising direct control over which clients SIS accepted and the leaked files provided the first public evidence of the specific Santeda relationship.
Regulatory Context in the UK and Curaçao
UK gambling rules prohibit licensed operators from promoting or facilitating access to unlicensed offshore platforms and the Curaçao framework operates under its own licensing standards that differ from British requirements and the Santeda sites involved in the 2022 deal carried Curaçao authorisation while facing claims that they actively solicited British customers. The contrast between the two regulatory environments forms the core tension highlighted in the reporting and the SIS arrangement sits at the intersection of those systems.
Conclusion
The Guardian account based on the Casino Secrets material shows how ownership stakes in a data supplier can create indirect financial links between UK betting groups and offshore networks and the operators have continued to emphasise the need for tax policies that keep customers inside the regulated market while the dividend history from the Santeda contract remains part of the public record following the leak. Further examination of the files and corporate filings may clarify the scale of the payments and the effectiveness of the separation measures described by the companies.