Struggling Chinese gambling operator 500.com has appointed new financial auditors after its existing auditor resigned over the company’s links to a Japanese casino bribery scandal.

On Monday, the Shenzhen-based, Nasdaq-listed 500.com reported that its auditor Friedman LLP had resigned last week. Friedman pulled the eject lever after disagreeing with 500.com management on “the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting in light of certain alleged unlawful payments.”

Said payments were made by ‘consultants’ engaged by 500.com to promote the company’s pursuit of a Japanese casino project. The payments caused a major political scandal in Japan that led to the arrest of Japanese lawmaker Tsukasa Akimoto last Christmas and the subsequent resignations of 500.com’s chairman and CEO.

In January, 500.com established a Special Investigation Committee (SIC), which reportedly has yet to identify any violation of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Regardless, Friedman said the suspect payments “may have reflected material weakness” in 500.com’s internal controls and thus the auditor can no longer stand by the reports it prepared for 500.com’s financial statements for 2017 and 2018.

The Mike Postle drama is a bit like the 11th and final season of the U.S. sitcom Happy Days. By the time it comes to an end, you’re not sure whether you’ll like any of the characters involved.

That might change after the weekend just gone, however, as Phil Galfond, the poker player even other players like, vowed to assist others in investigating Mike Postle

There have, of course, been plenty of investigations into the actions of Mike Postle at the time of going to press. As well as YouTube detectives Joey Ingram and Doug Polk branding up clips with their inimitable styles and slogans, Postle has already had his case heard in court – well, kind of. So far, the jury may not have needed to go out, but Postle’s name is hardly clear. It very much feels like he simply has been caught up yet. While the alleged Stones Live cheat started out a good couple of states clear of his pursuers, however, it does feel more and more like Postle is just a couple of blocks ahead of those behind him.

A shot in the arm for the plaintiffs still trying to seek compensation, emotional, financial or otherwise from Postle could come in the form of Phil Galfond. The Run It Once owner reached out to the poker community to help this weekend.

The business end of the National Rugby League (NRL) Finals series is set to kick-off this week after a COVID interrupted season. The Panthers locked in the minor premiership for only the third time in the club’s history with 15 consecutive wins. They are set to take on back-to-back champions the Roosters in the opening fixture.

We’ve taken a look at the finals line-up and given our tips on who is likely to advance to the second week of the NRL finals.

Panthers vs Roosters

The Panthers have been in superb form, off the back of 15 consecutive wins to close out the regular season. Under the guidance of a coaching duo of Ivan Cleary and Trent Barrett, the Panthers have been humming nicely in attack, while their opponents are coming off a horrendous 60-6 defeat to the Rabbitohs in the penultimate round of the regular season.

Gambling ads could be a slightly more endangered species on UK Facebook feeds following a deal between the social media giant and the country’s gambling regulator.  

On Monday, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) announced a partnership with Facebook to help UK residents limit the number of gambling come-ons they encounter while using the platform. Basically, it involves users ignoring their Qanon research long enough to bother investigating their content options via the site’s tools and settings.

The UKGC reached a similar understanding with Twitter in January, the specifics of which were equally apparent to any user who could be arsed to examine what tools were already at their disposal rather than simply moan about unwanted product pitches.

It’s worth remembering that the UKGC’s own surveys indicate that gamblers’ overall engagement with and susceptibility to social media marketing was already on the decline. However, there were increases in the impressionable 18-24 age demo, so perhaps less cynical types can see some actual merit in these ‘being seen to be doing something’ exercises.

Ukraine’s cyber-cops have busted a major online casino technology hub, as the government continues to prepare the ground for its regulated online gambling market.

On Monday, the Cyberpolice of Ukraine announced the arrest of an undisclosed number of individuals working for a “turnkey online casino creation and technical support services” operation in Kyiv. The operation reportedly had over 80 staff supporting over 20 illegal online casinos with around half-a-million customers.

The unidentified company was ostensibly set up for the development of legal online games and support services but in reality charged would-be gambling operators US$20k for a bare-bones online casino product with a full marketing service available for an additional $100k monthly fee. The group reportedly earned up to $500k per month through its illegal services.

Last week, Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov said that cybercrimes had increased 250% over the past five years, necessitating greater coordination among the country’s law enforcement agencies. But illegal gambling is also flourishing offline.

Thailand’s anti-online gambling campaign is now targeting international social media giants and the nation’s telecom operators, as previous efforts fail to staunch the interest of local gamblers.  

Last week, Thailand’s government filed formal complaints against Facebook and Twitter for allegedly failing to comply with local court rulings ordering them to block content involving online gambling, porn, illegal drugs and unflattering profiles of the Thai monarchy, all of which are forbidden under the country’s Computer Crime Act.

Digital Economy and Society Minister Buddhipongse Punnakanta said the social media giants had failed to comply with court orders requiring them to block hundreds of online accounts within the required 15-day period. Facebook reportedly blocked only 215 of 661 offending accounts while Twitter had blocked only four of 69 suspect accounts on its platform.

A police spokesperson warned that the social media firms could face fines of THB200k (US$6,300) plus additional daily fines of THB5k until the accounts are blocked. Given Facebook’s earnings, the penalties hardly represent an existential threat, so the Thai government may be forced to take more drastic measures in future.

Cambodia’s casino sector is slowly coming back to life after its prolonged pandemic hibernation.

Last Friday, Australian-listed casino operator Donaco International Ltd announced the “limited reopening” of its flagship Star Vegas casino in Poipet, Cambodia. All Cambodian casinos were ordered to close in April as the government tried to lower its COVID-19 infection count.

Donaco said the limited relaunch would allow Star Vegas to “test its operational systems whilst ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff and visitors.” The company tempered expectations by noting that Thailand’s border with Cambodia remains closed, blocking the primary source of Star Vegas clientele, while insisting the property wouldn’t incur “any material additional expenses” due to the limited nature of the restart. 

Earlier this month, Donaco revealed the financial toll the shutdown had on its fiscal 2020 performance, including a non-cash impairment charge of AU$50.5m due to its downgrading of the value of the Star Vegas casino license amid the ongoing pandemic uncertainty.

The battle for supremacy between two of poker’s top players has begun and Phil Galfond has finished the first few sessions at the felt with an early lead.

After a dramatic clash with VeniVidi in his first challenge, Phil Galfond spoke to us about the experience and his thoughts for the remaining challenges ahead.

Everyone is expecting this €100/€200 Pot Limit Omaha battle against Chance Kornuth to be one of toughest challenges he faces. So Galfond getting off to a strong start, winning €78,500 so far is impressive.

While the summer has been a quiet one for Galfond, he’s clearly been working hard on his game and it has showed that both men are focused on PLO in the first handful of sessions. Having played only 2,500 of the 35,000 hands that will take place, there is a very long way to go, but Galfond has made the slightly stronger start.

Climate change is real and there is a growing awareness among the population to try to mitigate any negative ramifications these changes will have. New, innovative solutions are constantly being introduced to offset the impact of everyday activities, and some are going to be able to help in more ways than others. As a whole, climate change is turning into big business and investors are taking notice. According to Modern Diplomacy, citing a study conducted by accounting giant PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), investments being made into climate innovation far outpace those of venture capital (VC) market rate, now reaching five times the amount targeting the latter. 

From 2013-2019, a total of $60 billion was injected into companies working on netzero emissions solutions. That first year, $418 million had been destined to climate tech, while $16.3 billion was contributed last year. Almost half of the total investment money went to companies and startups operating out of the U.S. and Canada, while $20 billion went to Chinese companies. The European market only captured $7 billion. 

In terms of overall investments, VC only accounts for 6% of all money that is given to finance new projects. Environmental tech is grabbing a larger portion of that pie, primarily, due to the provability and scalability of the solutions presented, and their ability to effectively reduce carbon use, or to erase it completely. By way of comparison, the environmental tech investment segment is growing three times faster than the artificial intelligence (AI) segment.

Explains PwC U.K.’s Celine Herweijer, the company’s global leader of Innovation and Sustainability, “The analysis shows the urgency of the opportunity, and gap to close, to support and scale innovative technologies and business models to address the climate crisis. Climate tech is a new frontier in venture investing for the 2020s.”

Bill Pascrell III is excited by the immense possibilities of the U.S. online gambling market. The lobbyist from the Princeton Public Affairs group sat down with long-time friend Becky Liggero Fontana on the latest episode of The Long Con to talk about the state of play in the growing U.S. online gambling market.

Pascrell was quick to point out that life is slowly returning to normal for the retail sector in North America. “Restaurants are opening and casinos are opening but the online gaming world has been incredibly robust,” he said.

While sports betting related content has been down, online casino and poker content has pushed jurisdictions like New Jersey to the top of the food chain. “New Jersey’s has just become the third-largest jurisdiction in the globe which is quite an accomplishment after only six years,” Pascrell added.

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Caesars Entertainment has ended any speculation about their intent to buy William Hill. After speculation that a bid was coming saw William Hill’s share price soar on September, Caesars has confirmed their intent to make a bid, valuing the British sportsbook at £2.9 billion ($3.73 billion).

The bid would come in at 272 pence per share, and Caesars noted its going to make further announcements when appropriate. That might seem low now, as a frenzy of speculation over an upcoming bid drove William Hill’s share price up 43.5% to 312 pence.

“The opportunity to combine our land based-casinos, sports betting and online gaming in the U.S. is a truly exciting prospect,” Caesars’ chief executive Tom Reeg said. “William Hill’s sports betting expertise will complement Caesars’ current offering, enabling the combined group to better serve our customers in the fast growing U.S. sports betting and online market.”

“We look forward to working with William Hill to support future growth in the U.S. by providing our customers with a superior and comprehensive experience across all areas of gaming, sports betting, and entertainment,” Reeg added.

Calvin Ayre, founder of CalvinAyre.com, CoinGeek and the Ayre Group, has a lot of wisdom to share when it comes to the gambling industry and Bitcoin. He explored his history and thoughts on both in a recent podcast conversation with Pierre Lindh, Managing Director of iGaming Next on iGaming Next Podcasts, and encouraged everyone to come learn more at CoinGeek Live.

Lindh began the conversation by asking the billionaire a big question: does money make you happier?

“I didn’t start out doing what I do aiming at money, because primarily what I do is, I’m a builder,” Ayre responded. “I like the challenge of building things and I really like having a vision of somewhere I want to go and then trying to do it. And my ambitions were decidedly a lot smaller when I was younger than what happened. But my own experience, I’ve had like no money when I was early on in my career, and I have lots of money now for a while now, and there’s no question that money makes your life better. Money is like a lubricant that just makes everything easier around you. So yes, money itself doesn’t buy happiness, but it removes irritants.”

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