Monthly Archives: June 2016

Getting It Right In Sports Betting

The West Africa Sports Betting Summit, taking place 18 to 20 July at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, Ghana, promises to offer a smorgasbord of activities for vendors, operators, bookmakers, regulators and various stakeholders.

The much anticipated three day exhibition will be open to the public on the 18th to 20th and visitors can expect a spectacular array of exhibits from top gaming vendors, operators and gaming companies across Africa and the globe.

Stalwarts like Safaribet who is a Platinum Sponsor and Ghana’s very first online sports betting company will be showing visitors why they have successfully opened over 50 sports betting franchises across Ghana. iSolutions who is also a Gold Sponsor, and Betradar do not only serve as data vendors but also offer bookmakers, sports federations and operators et al cutting edge solutions. German founded giant Mybet, deals with shop franchising and has successfully established over 50 shops in Ghana and is now expanding into the rest of the continent. Mybet.com is currently one of Europe’s most widely used betting website.

Africa being a growing market for virtual sports betting, Golden Race trumps its competitors by being on top of gaming trends and tailoring products and services according to client’s needs, habits; pocket and even country.

PokerStars Bids “Shalom” to Israel as Gray Market Concerns Mount

Israel is often accused of taking strong stands on a variety of political issues, but iGambling, it turns out, remains in the “unresolved” category for the Middle Eastern nation. Given that reality, PokerStars made the decision to cease offering real-money poker games to the Israeli market as of Monday, June 27. Israeli players were notified […]

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PokerStars Bids “Shalom” to Israel as Gray Market Concerns Mount

Israel is often accused of taking strong stands on a variety of political issues, but iGambling, it turns out, remains in the “unresolved” category for the Middle Eastern nation. Given that reality, PokerStars made the decision to cease offering real-money poker games to the Israeli market as of Monday, June 27. Israeli players were notified […]

The post PokerStars Bids “Shalom” to Israel as Gray Market Concerns Mount appeared first on .

Tinian Dynasty investor finally wins casino license but unpaid workers unimpressed

The Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino may rise from the ashes now that local regulators have finally approved the gaming license of one of the property’s main investors.

The Tinian Casino Gaming Control Commission in the Northern Marianas recently granted a conditional license to Tinian Entertainment Corp (TEC), an investor in the Tinian Dynasty property, whose owner Hong Kong Entertainment (HKE) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last December.

TEC’s license approval is viewed as the first step in the company’s complete takeover of the troubled property from HKE. Tinian Dynasty’s casino closed last September and its hotel operations followed suit in March. HKE’s gaming license was officially revoked in May for failure to honor its license commitments.

TEC, an affiliate of Tim Chen‘s Chinese Strategic Holdings Ltd, had been trying to win its gaming license for a year now but the pace quickened this spring as it became clear that HKE wasn’t coming back from the brink. If all proceeds according to plan, the casino-hotel could re-open by December.

Tony G and Tom Hall Discuss $660k Bet Following EU Referendum

The UK’s European Union (EU) referendum appears to have become something of a betting opportunity for the world’s richest poker players following a national vote on June 23. Even before a single vote had been cast, Tony G offered fellow Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Nigel Farage a €1 million ($1.1 million) bet on […]

The post Tony G and Tom Hall Discuss $660k Bet Following EU Referendum appeared first on .

Tony G and Tom Hall Discuss $660k Bet Following EU Referendum

The UK’s European Union (EU) referendum appears to have become something of a betting opportunity for the world’s richest poker players following a national vote on June 23. Even before a single vote had been cast, Tony G offered fellow Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Nigel Farage a €1 million ($1.1 million) bet on […]

The post Tony G and Tom Hall Discuss $660k Bet Following EU Referendum appeared first on .

Asian Euro 2016 betting busts reach knockout round

Another week brings another round of Euro 2016 betting busts by Asian law enforcement.

Our first stop takes us to Hong Kong, where police are busy tallying the score of their Operation Crowbeak anti-betting crackdown. Police say they’ve arrested over 50 individuals and confiscated around HKD 130m (US $16.7m) in Euro 2016-related betting slips.

Police reported that more and more bookmakers were eschewing the old evidence-heavy practice of recording betting information on paper slips, opting instead for encrypted texts sent via the WhatsApp messaging service. This technological switch was forcing the HK police to solicit more help from their cybersecurity teams.

A conviction for illegal bookmaking in Hong Kong carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a HKD 5m fine. Individual bettors can face prison sentences of up to nine months and fines of up to HKD 30k.

Asian Euro 2016 betting busts reach knockout round

Another week brings another round of Euro 2016 betting busts by Asian law enforcement.

Our first stop takes us to Hong Kong, where police are busy tallying the score of their Operation Crowbeak anti-betting crackdown. Police say they’ve arrested over 50 individuals and confiscated around HKD 130m (US $16.7m) in Euro 2016-related betting slips.

Police reported that more and more bookmakers were eschewing the old evidence-heavy practice of recording betting information on paper slips, opting instead for encrypted texts sent via the WhatsApp messaging service. This technological switch was forcing the HK police to solicit more help from their cybersecurity teams.

A conviction for illegal bookmaking in Hong Kong carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a HKD 5m fine. Individual bettors can face prison sentences of up to nine months and fines of up to HKD 30k.

Russia to ban bets on non-sports events

Russia’s bookmakers are up in arms over their government’s plans to ban betting on non-sports events.

In April, Russian authorities published the draft text of a bill that would require bookmakers to pay a 10% tax on their online sports betting sales. Last week, the draft was amended to include a prohibition on betting on non-sports events both online and via land-based points of sale.

Some bookies are taking a philosophical approach to the non-sports ban, which, if approved, is scheduled to take effect this December. Maxim Afanasyev, deputy director of Russian betting operator Liga Stavok, told Bookmakers Rating that non-sports wagering was “a nice addition” to traditional sports betting but not “the driver” of Russian bookies’ bottom lines.

Taking a more strident approach was Konstantin Makarov, CEO of betting operator Bingo Boom and president of the Bookmakers Self Regulatory Organization, who called the non-sports betting ban “absolutely unreasonable.” Speaking with Betting Business Russia, Makarov said it would be far better if the government laid out specific regulations to govern non-sports betting.

Russia to ban bets on non-sports events

Russia’s bookmakers are up in arms over their government’s plans to ban betting on non-sports events.

In April, Russian authorities published the draft text of a bill that would require bookmakers to pay a 10% tax on their online sports betting sales. Last week, the draft was amended to include a prohibition on betting on non-sports events both online and via land-based points of sale.

Some bookies are taking a philosophical approach to the non-sports ban, which, if approved, is scheduled to take effect this December. Maxim Afanasyev, deputy director of Russian betting operator Liga Stavok, told Bookmakers Rating that non-sports wagering was “a nice addition” to traditional sports betting but not “the driver” of Russian bookies’ bottom lines.

Taking a more strident approach was Konstantin Makarov, CEO of betting operator Bingo Boom and president of the Bookmakers Self Regulatory Organization, who called the non-sports betting ban “absolutely unreasonable.” Speaking with Betting Business Russia, Makarov said it would be far better if the government laid out specific regulations to govern non-sports betting.