China’s war on online gambling continues to ramp up, with the authorities apparently keen on sending an unmistakable message ahead of next month’s FIFA World Cup tournament in Russia.

Last week, China’s state-run Xinhua media outlet reported that police in the municipality of Chongqing had arrested 94 individuals for suspected involvement in an online gambling ring. The raids, which happened on April 8, brought the total number of online gambling suspects arrested since February to 453.

The raid reportedly involved 13 different gambling sites with more than 100k registered users, who collectively wagered over RMB350m (US$55m) before the whip came down. The police investigation began in February, after the authorities received a tip that a local firm was renting servers and providing tech support for unauthorized online gambling operators.

On Tuesday, Xinhua reported on a number of cases in which the suspects “used online game platforms for gambling.” Xinhua claimed that police in Beijing, Henan province and the autonomous region of Guangxi had conducted a joint operation last month that resulted in the arrests of 36 suspects and the seizure of over RMB65m. Xinhua also reported on a similar action in Zhejiang province in January involving 52 suspects and RMB330m in stakes.

The versatility of Bitcoin Cash (BCH) was on full display last weekend at a party paid for entirely with the world’s only working and scalable cryptocurrency.

In March, CoinGeek.com and CalvinAyre.com founder Calvin Ayre enlisted the help of renowned Thailand-based party planners BB Experience to organize a shindig for some special guests ahead of the Satoshi’s Vision conference in Tokyo.

The party was paid for entirely in BCH, the only Bitcoin that remains true to Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision of a cryptocurrency that could handle a high volume of transactions large and small, processed with minimal delays and at minimal cost.

Suitably impressed with his original BB Experience, Ayre reached into his BCH wallet to fund another memorable bash for some friends visiting Thailand this past weekend.

Net profit of Philippine-listed casino operator Bloomberry Resorts Corp. jumped to a record of PHP3.691 billion (US$71.2 million) in the first quarter of 2018 on the back of robust mass and VIP segments.

Data provided by Bloomberry showed that its net profit for the three months ending March 2018 was 71 percent or PHP1.54 billion ($29.65 million) higher than the PHP2.153 billion ($41.46 million) net profit it chalked during the first quarter of 2017.

The firm’s gross gaming revenue (GGR), on the other hand, totaled PHP13.75 billion ($264.77 million) in the first quarter of 2018, up 28.3 percent from PHP10.72 billion ($206.43 million) reported in the same period last year. The GGR accounted for 94.4 percent of Bloomberry’s revenues.

Reported earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) rose 44 percent year-on-year to PHP4.537 billion ($87.37 million), the highest reported in a quarter, according to the casino operator.

Looks like MGM Resorts International celebrated its legislative victory in Connecticut too soon.

Proponents of the proposed Bridgeport casino were dealt with a major blow after Connecticut’s state Senate thumbed down a proposal to debate a bill that would allow casino operators to compete in an open license bidding process.

The Hartford Courant reported that proponents will have to start all over again with the whole legislative process in 2019 after the Senate killed their hopes for the bill passing this year. Bridgeport Democrat Rep. Christopher Rosario consoled himself with the fact that it was the first time in 25 years that “that any piece of gaming legislation has gotten out of the House chamber.”

Before the House’s historic 77-73 vote last Friday, members locked horns on the issue on whether the measure would violate its standing agreement with the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes.

The writing’s on the wall for non-profit organization All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), according to its former general secretary.

In a commentary posted on Glaws.in, former AIGF General Secretary Jay Sayta called for immediate reforms after the group saw a series of setbacks, including the group’s failure to create a unified framework for self-regulation, protection of consumers, and responsible gaming.

Sayta, who is one of the founding signatories of AIGF, feared that the group that was envisioned to be the umbrella body that would push the interest of all stakeholders in the gambling industry would become irrelevant in the future.

“In light of the aforementioned grave concerns, AIGF should evaluate and introspect whether it is necessary to revamp the organizational structure, team and priorities and align it in a manner that would effectively enable it to achieve its stated goals,” Sayta said.

partypoker LIVE enter into a partnership with the Brazilian playing card manufacturer Copag as they continue to create the most exceptional live experience in the business.

Most train drivers like to do anything except drive a train. The most avid dodgers are the trade union reps, and in my day one of the prime culprits was called Bernard.

Bernard would prance around the depot, suited, booted – the type you had to ask to lift their feet so you could vacuum around them.

One day, Bernard came into the office with a new mobile phone. It was a bulky beast with a fin – like a rubber shark. Bernard said he was part of the ‘Mobile Phone Working Group,’ and was trialling the new ‘unbreakable phone’.

London’s Victoria Coren-Mitchell was, for a number of years, a regular at the felt. The poker pro amassed more than $2.47 million in live action, including a first-place win at the EPT NLHE tournament in Sanremo in April 2014. She took some time off last year, and has now made her way back to the tables, noting that some interesting changes had occurred during her absence.

At the end of April, Coren-Mitchell participated in her first tournament in a year, tweeting as she sat down, “I’m playing a POKER TOURNAMENT! How retro is that? My first in nearly a year. ‘Remind me of the rules!’ I quipped as I sat down. Turns out they literally have changed the rules.”

Indeed, they have. One of the most glaring rule changes has been with the shot clock. While it has been welcomed by the majority of players, it would still take some getting used to by those that are used to a slower pace in the games. Coren-Mitchell didn’t seem to care for it too much, taking to Twitter to post, “…From day 2, this tournament has a ‘shot clock’ so every decision has to be made in 30 seconds. I’m a quick player myself but I don’t like this for a main event. Poker is a slow, crafty game; a cricket for the mind. This bends too much to the impatience of the iPhone world.”

Hmm. From day 2, this tournament has a “shot clock” so every decision has to be made in 30 seconds. I’m a quick player myself but I don’t like this for a main event. Poker is a slow, crafty game; a cricket for the mind. This bends too much to the impatience of the iPhone world.

The battle for the board has been heating up at Wynn Resorts, with Elaine Wynn trying to capitalize on her majority shareholder status to sway the future of the company. While the “legacy board,” as she calls it, has resisted, she has continued the fight. The majority of her energy has been focused on ousting sitting director Jay Hagenbuch at the end of his term this month, and it looks like she may have just found a couple of allies.

This past weekend, corporate advisory firms Glass Lewis (GL) and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) announced their recommendation that Hagenbuch not be reelected when the board meets on May 16. The two firms have a lot of influence on how corporations make decisions, and their endorsements could prove to be the undoing of the “old boy’s network” at Wynn Resorts.

ISS stated on Saturday that Hagenbuch is “part of a legacy board that oversaw material failures in governance and risk oversight” and that his presence on the board does “not seem to outweigh the risks associated with permanence.” On Friday, GL announced that it was “inclined to conclude there may be greater value in effectively objecting to Mr. Hagenbuch’s nomination, which should be considered against his questionable role on the special committee reviewing accusations against Mr. Wynn and his shared culpability for years of misaligned compensation practices that Glass Lewis continues to believe are problematic.”

Elaine Wynn has repeatedly claimed that Hagenbuch’s undying support for Steve Wynn, the company’s founder and former CEO, proves that he is unworthy to continue to serve as director. She has made calls to shareholders to not vote for him during the upcoming elections, and wants to bring in fresh blood to the board. Not surprisingly, the board is pulling out all stops to try and keep Elaine from getting her way.

A proposed casino called The 13 has met with a number of delays that make people understand why the number 13 is considered bad luck. Several times, launch dates and construction schedule deadlines have been missed and the casino developers, The 13 Holdings Ltd., have had to request more funds to complete the project. Now, The 13 hopes that, by changing its name, it can possibly reverse the string of bad luck.

The 13 has proposed changing the name of the company to South Shore Holdings Ltd. It submitted the proposal to shareholders on Tuesday, who approved the measure. The reason given for the name change is to “provide a clear delineation” between the company’s corporate identity and that of the casino, which will retain the 13 name.

The project, which sits on the Cotai-Coloane border, was expected to launch hotel operations by April 30. This was changed to June 30. The delays follow several from last year that saw the construction being held up.

Only the hotel portion would open by the end of June. The casino is currently scheduled to open by the end of March of 2019, and will operate 66 gaming tables, a quarter of which will be reserved for VIP action. The remainder will go to “premium mass” customers. If it stays on schedule, the casino will launch at the same time that The 13 offers some of its retail shops.