Legal – Page 15 – FairOdds Network

November 16, 2022

Former MLB player Puig pleads guilty to lying in illegal gambling investigation

Former Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Yasiel Puig has pled guilty to charges for lying to federal agents who were investigating an illegal gambling operation.

Federal law enforcement agents interviewed Puig regarding bets he placed on sporting events with an illegal gambling operation run by an individual named Wayne Nix. The Cuban-born baseball star has agreed to plead guilty to one count of making false statements – an offense for which he could face up to five years in federal prison.

Puig, who currently is a right fielder for the Kiwoom Heroes in South Korea, has agreed to pay a fine of at least $55,000 and to make an initial appearance in US District Court.

“Under our system of justice, no one is above the law,” said United States attorney Martin Estrada. “The integrity of our nation’s criminal justice system depends on people telling the truth, and those who fail to abide by this simple principle must face consequences.”

“When given the opportunity to be truthful about ..

November 14, 2022

“No connection” between MGA and subjects of mafia investigation, regulator says

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has said that recent preliminary investigations into mafia associations with Malta-based gambling have found no links between the MGA and suspected individuals.

Reports in the media said the Italian authorities had contacted the MGA regarding how the mafia had been using websites owned by Maltese operators to offer unlicensed and illegal gambling.

A report published in the Times of Malta last November said individuals illegally collected money for bets in Italy using sites belonging to Maltese companies operating without a licence issued by the Italian authorities. This, it claimed, helped them to launder money from other illegal activities.

A follow-up then said that preliminary investigations had concluded last week and that a total of 34 individuals had been identified.

However, the MGA said that it had been established that there were no links between itself and those that had carried out the reported illegal activity.

“The MGA refers to repor..

November 9, 2022

Voters reject both California sports betting proposals

Two different measures to legalise sports betting in California have both been defeated.

While vote counting is ongoing, the Associated Press has already called both races, with the proposals set to be defeated.

The failures of both the tribal-backed Proposition 26 and commercial-supported Proposition 27 leaves unclear the future of sports betting in California, which is the most populous state in the US.

As of 5am ET, Proposition 27 stood at 16.4% for and 83.6% opposed with 38% of votes counted so far. This compares with its rival ballot measure, which is behind 70.7% to 29.3%, also with 38% of votes counted according to data supplied by the New York Times.

The failures of both proposals is a major setback in the expansion of sports betting in the US, which has exploded in the years since the Supreme Court ruling on Murphy vs NCAA repealed the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA), allowing sports betting to spread across the country.

The campaigning on ..

November 9, 2022

Flutter CEO: Gambling Act white paper likely pushed back to 2023

Flutter chief executive Peter Jackson said that he thinks that the Gambling Act white paper is most likely to be delayed until next year, as he suspects new ministers will wish to “make their mark” on the document.

Speaking at Flutter’s Q3 earnings call, Jackson said he could not predict the the Gambling Act white paper timeline with any confidence, given that its release had repeatedly been pushed back by personnel changes in government and at the Gambling Commission. However, he said he would think its release was more likely to be in 2023 than this year.

“I don’t know if I can really comment on timing because I’ve tried to comment for the last two years and keep getting it wrong, so I might have lost some credibility there,” he said. “But I suspect it’ll end up coming out after Christmas as there isn’t much time now before Christmas.

“The new ministers I think will want to make their mark on it.”

Gambling Act review delays

The white paper is the next phase in the Gambling Act r..

November 8, 2022

Gambling Commission lifts Lebom suspension after Gamstop integration

The Gambling Commission (GC) has lifted football prediction and betting operator Lebom Limited’s licence suspension after the company integrated with self-exclusion scheme Gamstop.

Lebom had its licence suspended on 3 November after failing to integrate with Gamstop’s self-exclusion platform. Since March 2020, It has been a mandatory requirement for operators to integrate with the service and to refuse custom to registered participants.

“Gamstop provides a crucial service for people who feel they are suffering gambling harm,” said Gambling Commission executive director of operations Kay Roberts. “It is simply unacceptable for any online operator to fail to integrate with the scheme.”

Following Lebom’s failure to register with Gamstop, the the Gambling Commission undertook a review of the business’ licence under section 116 of the 2005 Gambling Act. While it is unclear whether this process has completed, the lifting of the suspension is certainly a step forward for the business as it..

November 8, 2022

Fandex receives patent for fantasy sports stock exchange

Free to-play fantasy sports stock exchange Fandex has taken a step forward towards securing its intellectual property, announcing today that it has received a US patent for its platform.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted US patent No 11,436,674 to the fantasy business which covers certain aspects of the company’s fantasy sports team and player stock exchange.

“This is a huge moment for us here at Fandex as our team has worked hard since 2017 to create this patented platform and we look forward to speaking with the market leaders in igaming to discuss licensing and other partnerships” said Matt D’Alessandro, CEO of Fandex. “The patent not only adds to our intellectual property portfolio covering our novel fantasy sports exchange, but it also strengthens our competitive advantage.”

D’Alessandro outlined the business’ future IP strategy.

“We have additional patents pending as part of our IP protection strategy, and we will continue our innovation efforts to..

November 8, 2022

Sports betting on ballot in California as midterms begin

Today, Californians will vote on the duelling sports betting ballot measures, Proposition 26 and Proposition 27, as polls open for the 2022 US midterm elections.

Voting has indeed already begun, as every county in the Golden State has early voting and drop-off locations. Backed by California’s 78 gaming tribes, Proposition 26 is a retail-first proposal that would legalise sports wagering at tribal casinos and licensed horse racing tracks – imposing a 10% tax on the profits derived from such activities.

This compares with the commercial-sector-supported Proposition 27, which would permit online sports betting. Under the text of the proposed law, such agreements would cost $100m (£87.2m/€100m) – limiting access to the market from all but the largest operators.

Barring a major upset, both proposals are set to fail according to polling from the Berkeley Institute of Government Studies (IGS). When questioned, 31% of respondents supported Prop 26, with 42% opposed; support for Prop 27 wa..

November 7, 2022

Analysts divided on potential value of FanDuel IPO after court ruling

Analysts are divided on the value that may come from a potential FanDuel IPO, after a court ruling left the hopes of a potential spin-off for the US market leader up in the air.

The reactions come following a New York court ruling that media giant Fox must pay $4.16bn if it wishes to acquire a 18.6% stake in FanDuel, which is owned by Flutter Entertainment

While the court ruling settled the question of the value of the stake that Fox had the option to buy, it left the question of a FanDuel spin-off up in the air until next year. The tribunal will determine early next year the conditions under which Fox may be able to participate in a FanDuel IPO, which Flutter had raised the prospect of before the legal dispute began.

Analysts at Barclays said that this factor was “dampening the enthusiasm” of the main ruling.

“The path to a FanDuel IPO is not yet clear with Fox stating that ‘Flutter cannot pursue an IPO for FanDuel without Fox’s consent or approval from the arbitrator’,” Barclays ..

November 4, 2022

So what went wrong with California sports betting?

iGB Op-Ed: Both Prop 27 and 26 look like they are headed to defeat in next week’s vote; Zak Thomas-Akoo asks what went wrong, and how can the industry learn to better sell itself to the electorate?

With 39.2 million people, California is the most populous state in the union. If it was an independent country, it would have the fifth largest economy on earth. The state is home to the jewel of the global modern economy, Silicon Valley; has one of the most potent network of colleges on the planet and is the site of America’s second city, Los Angeles. But it’s looking like none of that wealth will be flowing into sports betting any time soon, as the state’s duelling sports betting proposals are both likely heading for defeat.

According to polling by the Berkeley Institute of Government Studies (IGS), both ballot initiatives are underwater: The tribe-led Proposition 26, for retail betting only, sees numbers of 31% for and 42% against, while the commercial-led effort – which would permit o..

November 3, 2022

Austrac orders SportsBet and Bet365 to conduct money laundering audits

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac) has ordered an audit of both Bet365 and Flutter-owned SportsBet, to determine if the operators have broken money laundering rules.

If SportsBet or Bet365 is found to be non-compliant with the rules, Austrac may then take further action, such as a court-ordered fine.

Austrac, a government body focused on money laundering, noted the action was “the result of an extensive supervisory campaign that assessed entities within the corporate bookmaker sector and follows the recent commencement of an investigation into Entain”.

The auditors will examine compliance with four areas of money laundering laws.

The first is whether the two operators adopted and maintained “an AML/CTF programme that has risk-based systems and controls in place to effectively identify, mitigate and manage money laundering and terrorism financing risks”.

They will next look at whether the operators conducted proper money laundering risk assessments.

October 26, 2022

World Series of Politics: Bill Miller of the American Gaming Association

The World Series of Politics welcomes Bill Miller of the American Gaming Association as first guest.

AGA CEO Miller joins Brendan Bussmann and Brandt Iden to look back on this year’s Global Gaming Expo.

American Gaming Association, G2E and illegal gambling

Miller discusses this year’s Global Gaming Expo after almost 25,000 visitors descended on the Sands Convention Centre earlier in October. He also talks about the US gaming industry’s post-Covid recovery and the threat of the illegal market.

Read his interview, published earlier this week, with iGB for more from the AGA.

Maryland sports betting

This episode also features Maryland, where lawmakers have taken a step towards launching mobile sports betting after a fraught process. There’s a wager on the line between our hosts on this one, just to up the stakes further.

Brendan also discusses the state of play for Macau casinos, where recovery has been hindered by China’s zero Covid policy.

And there’s even more intrigue aroun..

October 26, 2022

Ontario report

iGB’s new report on Ontario offers exclusive insight into Canada’s most populous province – the first to regulate betting and igaming.

When the Ontario market opened in April this year, it wasn’t quite brand new ground.

Anyone in the industry could tell you that the grey market in Canada’s largest province had been thriving for quite some time.

Still, bringing the province from grey to white offers certainty and new opportunities for many.

Six months on, we have a sense of the spoils available. Operators – excluding the lottery – brought in a combined CA$267m in the three months ended 30 September.

The biggest challenge in the province, however, may be marketing rules. Operators can offer bonuses, but may not promote them. As Marese O’Hagan writes in our progress report, that’s been difficult, but it hasn’t seriously dampened excitement about the jurisdiction.

And for now, those complying with the rules still need to compete with some unlicensed brands, which continue to do busin..

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Tag: Legal