TLDR
- The UK has launched an independent review of the Gambling Act 2005.
- Prediction markets, crypto and AI are among the products under review.
- The commission will study the line between gambling and financial activity.
- Betting and gaming duties raised £3.9 billion in the 2025/26 financial year.
- The call for evidence closes February 12, 2027, with a final report due in 2028.
Prediction markets and cryptocurrencies are now part of a formal UK review that could reshape how the country defines gambling. The newly formed Gambling Policy Commission will examine whether products that sit between betting and financial activity still fit under the Gambling Act 2005.
The independent review was announced this week. It will test whether the law, passed more than 20 years ago, is still fit for purpose or whether a new framework is needed.
The commission will look at artificial intelligence, crypto and gambling-like features in digital products. A final report is expected in 2028.
Prediction Markets Put Pressure on Old Rules
Will Hutton, president of the Academy of Social Sciences, said the growth of prediction markets shows how new technology is challenging existing regulation. “Everything from consumer protection to appropriate tax policies need urgent review,” Hutton said.
The commission will study the boundaries between gambling and financial activity. This includes products that operate across both sectors.
Professor Jagjit Chadha, an economist at the University of Cambridge, chairs the commission. Professor James Reade of the University of Reading serves as chief economist.
Chadha said the last full independent review of gambling law took place about 25 years ago. “Since then, both the gambling market and the wider technological environment have changed considerably,” he said.
Tax, Illegal Betting and Harm Under Review
Taxation is a central part of the inquiry. The commission will examine how recent changes to gambling duties affect operators and consumers, and how they interact with the statutory levy that funds research, prevention and treatment.
The review follows the government’s Autumn Budget decision to raise Machine Games Duty from 5% to 25%. The extra revenue is meant to support high streets, including through business rate relief.
HM Revenue & Customs collected £3.9 billion ($5.23 billion) in betting and gaming duties in the 2025/26 financial year. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport estimates gambling added £5 billion ($6.71 billion) to UK gross value added in 2024 and supported about 75,000 jobs in 2025.
The review will also measure the scale of illegal gambling, including offshore and unlicensed sites. A Gambling Commission survey found 2.5% of adults who gambled online in the past year had used an illegal site in the previous four weeks.
Ismail Vali, president of Gambling Compliance International, questioned whether that figure shows the true financial scale. “The percentage of people reporting illegal gambling is not the percentage of gambling revenue captured by crime,” Vali said.
The commission will look at enforcement involving payment providers, search engines, social media platforms and app stores. It will also consider whether future changes to the law should allow civil liability for gambling-related harm.
Sports betting is another focus, particularly British horseracing. The commission will weigh whether sports bodies should have economic rights over betting on their events and whether part of the General Betting Duty should become a statutory Sports Betting Levy.
The inquiry will also judge whether the government’s 2023 Gambling White Paper reforms delivered measurable results. It will check if the measures were proportionate and backed by enough evidence.
The call for evidence closes on February 12, 2027. Evidence gathering and commissioned research will continue through 2027, ahead of the final report in 2028.
