Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with the Financial Conduct Authority on the potential lessons it has learnt from the collapse of Football Index.

The collapse of BetIndex Ltd, the operators of the novel gambling product Football Index, had a significant impact on former customers, and we recognise the frustration and anger that this has caused. As a result, the Government announced an Independent Review, conducted by Malcom Sheehan KC, which looked at how the company had been regulated and identified lessons learned for various agencies including the Financial Conduct Authority. These recommendations have since been implemented.

Following the collapse of Football Index, the then-Minister held several meetings with the Gambling Commission, and officials have worked closely with their counterparts at His Majesty’s Treasury on the role of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in this case.