Australian Problem Gambler Sues Online Bookmakers for Losses

In a landmark Australian legal case, a man who stole millions from clients and punted it all away, is suing the bookmakers who took his bets.

Gavin Fineff is in the middle of a nine year prison sentence after pleading guilt to 12 counts of obtaining a financial advantage by deception. Between 2016 and 2020, the then financial planner stole more than $3 million from clients, many of them elderly, to fund a gambling addiction.

The bookmakers who accepted his bets and who are now being sued are BetEasy and Ladbrokes.

In less than a year and a half he placed $50 million in bets with BetEasy, losing $3.6million. He lost $750,000 to Ladbrokes over a 20 month period. Despite his prodigious betting volume and losses, neither bookmaker made enquiries regarding his source of funds – something required under KYC regulations.

During his client-funded gambling spree Gavin was turning over around $1 million per week in bets, while his annual salary was $130,000.

Both Ladbrokes and BetEasy were found to be in breach of Northern Territory Racing and Wagering Commission (NTRWC) license conditions, but both were treated with the kind of leniency expected of the NTRWC.

Once described as ‘useless as a chocolate teapot‘ the NTRWC maintains a cosy and regularly conflicted relationship with its licensees, priding itself on never revoking a license. BetEasy and Ladbrokes copped fines of just under $80,000 each. Done.

Now both bookmakers, and the industry collectively, will be hoping the courts are just as lenient. A court finding that stolen funds lost to bookmakers must be returned will have bookmakers around Australia terrified at the resulting floodgate of legal action. Ambulance chasers Slater & Gordon would be salivating at the prospect!

Assisting Fineff’s legal team is Geoffrey Watson SC. He sees this as a landmark case with potential to change the Australian gambling industry.

“The argument will be that the betting companies were well and truly aware of Mr Fineff’s weakness, his vulnerability, and yet they continued to prey upon that same weakness, getting him to gamble more and more and lose more and more and that it was their knowing action in facilitating that which has made them liable to pay damages.”

Fineff is not only suing the bookmakers, but also the VIP managers who encouraged him to gamble.

George Khoury (BetEasy) and Steven Bedwell (Ladbrokes) were both well aware of Fineff’s problem gambling habits. Khoury had previously worked at Tabcorp where Fineff had already lost almost $4 million before having his account frozen following source of funds enquiries. Bedwell had worked at a Tabcorp subsidiary.

Shortly after Fineff was cut off from Tabcorp he received a cold call from Khoury with various inducements to open an account with BetEasy. A couple months later he was contacted by Bedwell who helped him open a Ladbrokes account in a false name. Both VIP managers earned commissions directly related to recruited players net losses, a practice that is common in the industry.

Any money recovered from a favourable verdict will go to the client’s whose money was stolen, not Fineff. But a verdict in his favour will see tremors felt by bookmakers and VIP managers alike. Even if the case is not successful, legal discovery could see an uncomfortable light shone on bookmakers’ VIP player targeting strategies, doing more reputational damage to an industry already under fire.