3259 stories by Philip Conneller
Flutter Entertainment Sells Oddschecker to US Private Equity Firm for $218 Million
Dublin-based Flutter Entertainment has agreed to sell its sports betting odds comparison site, Oddschecker, to Bruin Capital for up to $218 million. The US private equity firm said Monday it plans to repackage the largely UK-facing site for the emerging American sports...
Loto-Québec IT Guy Accused of Plundering Customer Accounts
Authorities in Quebec have charged an employee of the provincial gambling operator, Loto-Québec, with offenses related to the embezzlement of funds from customer accounts. Martin Raymond is a 37-year-old systems analyst who, until recently, worked in Loto-Québec’s online gambling call center. La...
888 Revenues Plummet 20 Percent Since End of UK Lockdown
Online gaming group 888 said revenues have fallen 20 percent since the reopening of retail and leisure venues in its core market, the UK, proving that lockdowns are good for business. Despite the downturn, the company still booked a strong Q2, buoyed...
Fixed-Odds Betting Terminal Inventor Denies Bribing Austria’s Former Vice Chancellor
In Austria, the co-inventor of the controversial gambling machines known as fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) is on trial for corruption, along with the country’s far-right former vice-chancellor, Heinz-Christian Strache. Prosecutors say Walter Grubmüller made a €10,000 donation to Strache’s Freedom Party. He...
Rapper Sky Balla Arrested for Violent Sexual Assault at Aria Casino Las Vegas
Bay Area rapper “Sky Balla” was arrested last month in Las Vegas on suspicion of violent sexual assault at Aria, according to an arrest report released Wednesday by Las Vegas police. The 41-year-old, real name Sky Nathan Branklyn, is currently being held...
iProsperity Ponzi Scheme Fraudster Siphoned $8M Through Crown Melbourne
A fugitive fraudster accused of running a A$325 million (US$245 million) Ponzi scheme passed $8 million of his clients’ missing funds through the Crown Melbourne Casino, Australian newspaper The Age reports. Michael Gu, whereabouts unknown, is the founder of Sydney-based property group...
Germany’s New Regulated Market for Online Casino, Poker Launches
Germany’s Interstate Treaty on Gambling (ISTG 21) came into force Thursday, ushering in a new era of legally regulated online casino and poker gaming. Previously, Germany had been a gray market for operators, albeit a large and extremely lucrative one. While it...
Gambler Sues Paddy Power Over ‘Misheard’ £286,000 Bet
London’s High Court has agreed to hear the case of a wealthy bettor who claims Paddy Power owes him £286,000 after the stakes of his bet were misheard. In September 2019, James Longley, 44, called Paddy Power’s telephone betting service with the...
Maine Governor Janet Mills Vetoes Tribes Sovereign Gaming Rights Bill
Maine Governor Janet Mills vetoed a bill on Wednesday that would have allowed the state’s four federally recognized tribes to offer gaming on their sovereign reservations. The bill, passed by lawmakers in Augusta last month, would have given the tribes the same...
Derek Stevens’ Allegedly Mobbed-Up Uncle Once Cheated Phil Mickelson Out of $500K
Golfer Phil Mickelson was once bilked out of $500,000 by a flamboyant Michigan bookie with close ties to the Detroit Partnership, the local Mob outfit. That’s according to transcripts from the 2007 racketeering trial of alleged Detroit Mafia boss Jack “Jackie the...
