Sami Kurvinen 
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Aviator lacked a valid UK licence for four years
Aviator by game studio Spribe is the most popular crash game ever created. You might also have come across its sponsorship of the UFC.
It turns out that Aviator has been operating in the UK for four years without the specific license required for hosting.
On this page, we break down what this means, how it affects UK players and why the UKGC did not fine Spribe.
What has happened?
Companies need a UKGC license to offer their casino games to UK customers. However, they also need a separate hosting license if they host their own games for UK gambling operators.
The issue was that Spribe was operating in the UK between 28 May 2021 and 30 October 2025 without a valid hosting license.
Why does hosting matter?
The hosting provider operates the infrastructure that delivers the game to players.
The UKGC considers hosting to be a regulated gambling function because the company operating the servers may have responsibilities related to:
- Security
- Player protection
- Anti-money laundering controls
- Crime prevention
- Operational integrity
That’s why a separate licence exists.
What is Spribe and Aviator?
Spribe was co-founded in 2018 by David Natroshvii, who has been open about the success of their worldwide mega-hit crash game, Aviator.
Aviator has over 70 million active players, and its simple, instant-result format makes it so popular.
Spribe has its main offices in Warsaw, Poland and Tallinn, Estonia.
Spribe also develops other types of instant-win games and online slots, but Aviator is their flagship game and what the company is mainly famous for.
Was the breach serious?
UKGC is saying that providing gambling facilities in Great Britain without the correct licence is potentially a criminal offence.
It wasn’t so much that the breach was serious, but rather that the lack of the correct licence raised questions about whether Spribe is competent to operate in a highly regulated industry if it lacks the competence to fully understand which licence it needs.
UKGC’s reaction
Spribe’s operating UK licence was suspended on 30 October 2025 when the UKGC became aware of the hosting issue.
Since then, Spribe has fully cooperated with the regulator and resolved the issue by obtaining the correct licence and amending its arrangements.
The suspension was lifted in March 2026 while the review continued, and in June 2026 the UKGC ultimately issued a formal warning.
Spribe said the issue resulted from a technical configuration or licensing oversight rather than an intentional attempt to avoid regulation.
Because of these factors, the UKGC chose the lightest available enforcement outcome: a formal warning instead of fining Spribe.
Does this affect UK players?
No, it doesn’t, as this hosting issue has not in any way affected how the game functions towards players. It did not change any outcomes or make Aviator or any of their other games manipulative.
The actual games, including Aviator, functioned exactly as intended, but the issue was more regulatory.
This also increases operators’ responsibility to properly check that their game suppliers are properly licensed.
