Playtech says Evolution-commissioned Spectrum report corroborates Black Cube claims on prohibited markets

Playtech has said a report commissioned by Evolution in its defamation case against Playtech and Black Cube ended up corroborating parts of Black Cube’s investigation rather than knocking it down. For high-risk payment teams, the practical point is straightforward: when a supplier dispute starts talking about prohibited markets, sanctions exposure, and customer monitoring, the compliance questions are no longer theoretical.

1. According to Playtech, Spectrum’s report raised “concerns around the availability of Evolution’s games in certain prohibited markets, the regulatory implications of its practices, and the lack of proactive monitoring of its customers”. Playtech said those points overlapped with claims made by Black Cube in its investigation.
2. The report was commissioned by Evolution as part of its ongoing defamation case against Playtech and Black Cube, and it was recently unsealed. Evolution had tried to delay release of the report, citing confidential and commercial sensitivity.
3. The case dates back to November 2021, when Evolution sued Black Cube after the intelligence firm was found to have been secretly investigating Evolution’s activities from December 2020. Playtech commissioned Black Cube’s investigation; Evolution has described it as a “smear campaign” involving secretly recorded interviews with staff members.
4. Black Cube’s dossier accused Evolution of supplying games into banned and sanctioned markets, including territories under US sanctions such as Iran and Syria. Spectrum said in its report that it did not believe Evolution had engaged in illegal practices, and it also refuted allegations concerning cash payments and the use of Evolution’s games in sanctioned countries.
5. Playtech said Spectrum was unable “to confirm or refute” some of Black Cube’s claims because Evolution failed to provide “significant information” requested by the firm. Playtech added that Spectrum could “specifically corroborate” claims that Evolution’s games were accessible and generating revenue in several “prohibited locations”, including Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

Evolution declined to comment on the update. For PSPs, acquirers and banking partners, the takeaway is the familiar one: if a merchant or supplier cannot produce the data needed to test whether gaming activity touched Iran, Syria or Sudan, the risk review does not get easier just because a commissioned report exists.