No matter how good a payment method is, it won’t be attractive to the broader population if it can’t keep low and consistent fees. A recent study by Veriphi shows that BTC, thanks to its small block sizes and constantly changing protocol, has sucked hundreds of millions of dollars from its users as fees.

For those familiar with BTC’s history, you’ll recall that when the currency hit its peak in interest in 2017, a surge of user demand caused fees to skyrocket, making the currency practically unusable. Developers implemented several solution to bring fees down, but due to the blockchain’s small blocksize and a lack of adoption, fees continue to average $3 per transaction.

531 MILLION USD COULD’VE BEEN SAVED IN FEES.

Our Case Study July Update concludes that users could’ve saved 57,817.69 BTC in transaction fees if they had fully adopted Segwit & Batching.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt across the gambling industry in the U.K. as William Hill were forced to close 119 betting shops permanently. The betting operator announced that the extended impact of COVID-19 on U.K. retail markets had meant the staff from the 119 affected sites would be redeployed to some of the other 1,500 betting shops that the bookmaker has in the country. Approximately 300 staff are expected to be affected by the restructuring.

The company said in a statement that they had made a positive recovery in the opening weeks of the second half of the year, thanks in large part to the resumption of the English Premier League, Germany’s Bundesliga, Major League Baseball and horse racing with the rebound. William Hill stated that they would be repaying £24.5 million job retention scheme allowance back to the government.

William Hill Chief Executive Ulrik Bengtsson acknowledged the challenges that his company has faced in the U.K. with the COVID-19 pandemic. “It has probably been the most difficult circumstances of my and many of my colleagues’ professional lives to guide the company through all this. Coming out the way we did and actually making a small profit in the period is incredible.” Bengtsson said.

Bengtsson felt positive about the company’s position, adding that paying back the furlough retention scheme was a priority. “I am delighted with William Hill’s performance in these extraordinary times. The furlough scheme provided welcome and timely support and meant we could protect the jobs of our 7,000 U.K. retail colleagues. Therefore, given the strength of our recovery post-lockdown, we have decided to repay the furlough funds. I think that’s the right thing to do.”

English Premier League club Crystal Palace wasted no time in preparation for the 2020/21 season, announcing a new shirt sponsorship with W88. The Asian betting brand is set to replace ManBetX in a one-year deal for the upcoming season.

#CPFC 🤝 W88.

We are delighted to announce a sponsorship deal with leading global online gaming brand, W88, who will become our new shirt sponsor for the 2020/21 season.

— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) August 3, 2020https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Star Entertainment remains in the spotlight at a New South Wales (NSW) government inquiry into the casino’s relationship with a junket partner, with alleged links to organised crime. Star Entertainment told the inquiry this week that they are yet to uncover enough hard evidence to substantiate the allegations.

The NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority inquiry heard that Star did act when advised by the Department of Home Affairs that the Suncity junket owner Alvin Chau had been barred from entering Australia.

Star Sydney closed down Suncity’s private game room at the Sydney casino. Suncity’s room was moved to another part of the casino, and their internal anti-money laundering team began an investigation.

Star City Chief Casino Officer, Greg Hawkins told the inquiry that the investigation team failed to find enough evidence that warranted terminating the relationship with Suncity. “Certainly, none of it has been forwarded to me that would change our association with the junket at this point.”

MGM Resorts hopes its new marketing scheme will result in a significant uptick in the number of semi-permanent residents living at two of its Las Vegas casinos, even if only for a short period of time. The casino operator has launched “Viva Las Office” (which, if you want to get picky, should be La Office or Las Offices) as a way to attract remote workers to live, work and play in the gambling city. The coronavirus has forced a great number of people to start working from home, either temporarily or permanently, and MGM Resorts wants them to all descend on Las Vegas.

The casino operator explains in a press release, “As millions of employees continue to work from home for the foreseeable future, MGM Resorts International is unveiling a much-needed change of scenery with ‘Viva Las Office,’ the ultimate home-away-from-the-home office experience at Bellagio and ARIA.” The program offers three tiers with different perks that cover stays of three, four or five nights (or more, if desired). In addition to accommodations at the two properties, the packages also provide access to a dedicated MGM Resorts account executive, daily food and beverage credits and discounts for local touristy activities. 

MGM Resorts President of Commercial and Growth Atif Rafiq explains, “We understand that working from home every day can become taxing and monotonous, and we are excited to offer a safe and curated experience here at Bellagio and ARIA that combines work and play. These packages are designed to offer the best of both worlds. A safe, spacious work setting while still allowing guests to enjoy the amenities and experiences Las Vegas is known for through a single offering.”

There’s also an option to throw in discounted airfare on JSX, a private jet company, that should appeal to those with an aversion to flying in a cattle car. The Viva Las Office packages are surprisingly affordable (just watch out for any outrageous “resort fees”) and start at just $100 per night. There’s The Associate package, The Manager package and The Executive package, each with its own perks and amenities. The Executive, for example, will give you a Bellagio Salone Suit or ARIA City Corner Suite, $75 in nightly food and beverage credit, $125 the JSX flight, a full-day cabana rental and a poolside massage. The price for a JSX flight next weekend, flying from Burbank, California to Las Vegas, starts at $139.00 (plus fees) per leg, so the discount isn’t bad. 

This hasn’t been a good year for casino operators. The coronavirus has taken its toll on revenues for the entire global gambling industry, with no one able to escape the pandemic’s grasp. Caesars Entertainment hasn’t been able to find its footing yet, starting the year off with a 13.6% decline in revenue during the first quarter. The second quarter has continued to show much of the same, with the company, now comprised of its own assets coupled with those of Eldorado Resorts following a successful merger of the two, continuing its slide. Maybe this is one of the reasons it feels it doesn’t have to enforce safety and health protocols established to protect gamblers and employees from COVID-19.

Caesars, which is now found under the ticker symbol CZR on NASDAQ, has released its first earnings report as the new post-merger company, showing a loss of $100 million on revenue of $126.5 million. This is a substantial drop from the net income of $18.9 million it reported for the same quarter last year but, since all properties were closed for the first month of the quarter, the results are to be expected. Says new Caesars CEO Tom Reeg, “Our properties began to reopen in late May and early June. All of the combined new Caesars Entertainment, Inc. regional properties are now reopened, and we are encouraged by operating trends.” Reeg was the head of Eldorado prior to the merger, and assumed control over all operations of the two casino companies when the deal was complete.

There’s talk of selling off the iGaming and sports gambling operations that are currently included in the Caesars portfolio; however, nothing definitive has yet been established. Reeg points out that the two segments could take in as much as $700 million in revenue next year, but selling them might be more lucrative. Given that the company reported debt of $14.7 billion and cash of $1.7 billion at the end of the quarter, it needs to figure out a winning game plan quickly. 

The stress caused by major drops in revenue can make any company become desperate and possibly not think with a clear head as it tries to recover lost ground. Caesars is already facing a lawsuit in Nevada by the Culinary Workers Union because it reportedly hasn’t been enforcing coronavirus protection protocols the way it should, and is now looking at a similar lawsuit coming out of New Jersey. Caesars denies any wrongdoing. 

The last few weeks, centering around thousands of players taking on the 2020 World Series of Poker Online Series has raised many good points about the industry. Those who rant need to understand that others can rant right back or defend their spouses, truly anyone can win their first-ever WSOP bracelet, even in their first-ever online event and long Day 1’s are tough. 

They’re even tougher if you don’t burst the money bubble in them.

That was the situation this week for well-known pro (and yet somehow divisive, which is odd, because we’ve met him a few times and he’s been pretty charming) Mike Leah in an ACR Poker event (America’s Card Room). Leah is a modern poker professional with an elite lifestyle, mindset and is atypical of the poker pro of this era. He’s also not happy at grinding for 12 hours without making the money and thinks recreational poker players would feel the same: 

Seriously @ACR_POKER @WPN_CEO who the 🤬 wants to play over 12hrs online on a day 1 (multiple times) and not even be in the $

After over ten hours at the online felt, Eoghan O’Dea joined his father Donnacha as one of five Irish World Series of Poker bracelet winners in the early hours as he closed out Event #51, the $400-entry Pot Limit Omaha event. In doing so, O’Dea won $100,945 for his day’s work, a spectacular result. 

Back in 2011, when he made the final table of the WSOP Main Event, O’Dea was a fresh-faced youngster, as seen here in this Card Player interview at the time: 

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqJ6T7gy34A?feature=oembed]

Event #51 of this year’s ‘behind closed front doors’ World Series saw O’Dea finally right the wrong of him not having a bracelet and he’ll receive it in the post via courier instead of being presented with it in Las Vegas. 

An entertaining two days of matches between some of European football’s finest club sides has produced the ‘Final Eight’ teams who will fly to Germany – or stay there if they’ve already arrived – to battle for the Europa League trophy.

There were wins for Inter Milan, Sevilla and Bayer Leverkusen as sides such as Glasgow Rangers, Roma and Getafe all saw their seasons end with defeat. The two English sides remaining in the competition were involved in two nail-biting clashes that deserve a fuller appreciation.

Manchester United 2-1 LASK 

An entertaining final home game of the elongated 2019/20 season at Old Trafford saw the hosts put out a largely-changed side, concede a wonder goal but still get the win they sought as they beat LASK 2-1 on the night to triumph 7-1 on aggregate.