In the article it is stated that he lost a total of £40k pounds of which £10k came from borrowing from friends, family and banks, the rest came from a property that he had sold, so fortunately for him he's not so heavily indebted and even if he has an average job he should be able to bounce back as long as he doesn't make another mistake, however losing so much money in one single night even for a reasonably wealthy person is is still incredibly painful.
This may sound harsh, but sometimes heavy financial losses are necessary to wean off gambling addicts from this habit. Hopefully he has learnt the lesson, and will never again involve himself with such behavior. And as you mentioned, it is not a life-threatening amount. The article also states that he has managed to kick the habit, after getting himself treated Cardiff-based at the Footsteps to Recovery institution. So eventually, this loss did something good to him. If he hasn't lost this amount, would he agree to the treatment?