Cambodia and China agreed to level up their fight against telecommunication fraud and online gambling last week.
The Two Countries Boost Efforts against Fraud, Illegal Gambling
Li Keqiang, China’s Premier visited Cambodia last week and participated in the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. During the event, he met with Cambodia’s Prime Minister, Hun Sen. The duo agreed to strengthen their relations and continue to crack down on telecommunications fraud, as well as online gambling.
According to a joint statement released on the topic, the two countries agreed for their law enforcement to collaborate against human trafficking, as well as telecommunications fraud and illegal gambling and other crimes.
“Law enforcement cooperation is to be furthered with highlights on combating human trafficking, online gambling, telecom fraud and related heinous crimes, facilitated by closer cooperation in capacity building and information exchanges,“
reads a joint statement on the topic
What’s more, Cambodia agreed to support cooperation with China in terms of cultural exchange. As a result, the country acknowledged it will continue to collaborate with China to “maintain regular exchanges between youth organizations and institutions.” Cambodia explained it will also support the so-called One-China policy and vowed to fight any activities that undermine the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
The Fight Against Illegal Gambling Continues
The recent announcement doesn’t come as a surprise, considering that last month, Cambodia introduced new guidelines for casino and gambling operators. The country’s General Secretariat of the Commercial Gambling Management Commission (CGMC) released new guidelines facilitating the operation and taxation of the operators. Ultimately, the new rules seek to ensure that gambling operators that offer their services are licensed. Therefore, all gambling operators will need to reapply for a license by the end of the year. After that process is completed, Cambodia will focus on the crackdown on unlicensed operators.
“The casino operators or owners have to display the original licenses or the certificate of legality in a visible place in their business locations,“
explained the CGMC
Eliminating gambling-related fraud and unlicensed operators will also help Cambodia in its efforts to exit the Financial Action Task Force’s money-laundering gray list. A key goal toward this achievement was the country’s crackdown on illegal gambling venues. Also, in an effort to further clear the market from illegal gambling operators, the country announced it will collaborate with other countries as well. Although Cambodia is making progress, there are still efforts that the country can make such as launching deep investigations and further strengthening its anti-money laundering efforts.
LSports, an Israeli provider of Innovative sports betting data API for the sports betting industry, has struck a major new M&A deal. The sports feed specialist will acquire Statscore, a Polish sports data company.
Statscore to Become a Part of LSports
Per the agreement, LSports will acquire Statscore in a deal that will help it reach new heights. This is notably the Israeli sports data company’s first European acquisition, marking a new chapter in its efforts to establish a foothold in Europe.
LSports pointed out that the acquisition of its Polish peer will help the former company reinforce its data collection capabilities. Under the agreement, LSports will be able to integrate a fully-developed data center that currently covers 30 sports.
Following the Statscore acquisition, LSports will strengthen its European footprint, providing it with further expansion opportunities. The company is ambitious to grow its presence in many regulated jurisdictions across Europe, the United States, Latin America and Asia.
The Deal Will Yield Results Sooner than Anyone Can Expect
Speaking about the current deal, Dotan Lazar, the co-founder and chief executive officer of LSports, said that his team has “full confidence” in Statscore’s products. Furthermore, he trusts the Polish sports data specialist’s team and believes that the acquisition will allow LSports to produce more tech-based in-depth content.
Lazar added that the acquisition of Statscore will propel LSports forward, allowing it to boost its business-to-business offering. His current ambition is to double the company’s productivity. In addition, he believes that the current deal will allow LSports and Statscore to produce new and innovative data-powered sports products.
I believe the acquisition of Statscore will lead us to new heights, more B2B products, personalization and data validation tools that will bring our accuracy level to 100%.
Dotan Lazar, CEO, LSports
Statscore’s chief operating officer, Dariusz Łęczyński, on the other hand, said that joining LSports felt like a “natural move” for his team. He said that his company felt as if it had been a successful partner of LSports for a long time.
Similar visions, yet different approaches to the products and data collection made each company unique. This spectacular potential has a chance to explode once combined.
Dariusz Łęczyński, COO, Statscore
Łęczyński concluded that he is thrilled to join LSports and explore the future with the Israeli company. He added that he believes the M&A deal will yield great results faster than anyone can imagine.
LSports continues its global expansion as it aims to conquer many regulated markets. A year ago, the company received a sports betting license in Colorado, allowing it to expand its reach in the United States.
NOVOMATIC, a full-service provider in the gaming industry and one of the biggest gaming tech companies in Europe, has consolidated its international expansion with the acquisition of HBG Group. The move cemented the company as one of the biggest concessionaires in Italy.
NOVOMATIC Has Acquired HBG Gaming
NOVOMATIC has been operating in Italy for more than 15 years now and has become a true leader in the gaming tech sector. Italy, which is one of the largest gaming markets in terms of revenue the in world, is famous for its love for video lottery terminals (VLPs).
HBG Gaming is a major operator in the Italian market, operating both as a concessionaire of VLTs and AWPs, and as an iGaming, online sports betting and online bingo operator. Its acquisition by NOVOMATIC will greatly reinforce the latter company’s business, expanding its overall presence in Italy and Europe.
NOVOMATIC is currently one of the most influential VLP and Amusement with Prizes (AWP) in the region. The M&A agreement will further bolster its business, helping it pave the way to further developments. The deal was notably approved by the Italian Autonomous Administration of State Monopolies (AAMS), which, NOVOMATIC pointed out, shows that the regulator trusts the group.
NOVOMATIC to Continue Growing
Ryszard Presch, an executive member of NOVOMATIC’s board, commented on the deal. He said that this acquisition will allow the company to further expand in Italy. He believes that the company can double its market share in the European country.
With this acquisition, NOVOMATIC is sending a clear signal of further international expansion and can double its market share as a concessionaire in one of the key European gaming markets.
Ryszard Presch, exec board member, NOVOMATIC
Meanwhile, Johannes Gratzl, another executive board member, praised the current deal as one of the largest takeover transactions in NOVOMATIC’s history. He added that this lays the foundation for further sustainable growth.
Lastly, Markus Büchele, NOVOMATIC Italia’s chief executive officer, said that the deal is a reason for celebration. He noted that it coincides with the fifteen anniversary of the company’s Italian arm. Büchele said that the acquisition of HBG’s business would allow NOVOMATIC to stay on a very successful path. He is looking forward to working with HBG’s team and growing the business.
Following the conclusion of the current deal, NOVOMATIC Italia now has more than 3,000 workers. For reference, the operator currently employs more than 21,900 workers worldwide.
The leading mobile-first games provider, Hacksaw Gaming, entered the United States for the first time after being awarded a license in West Virginia.
Hacksaw Awarded Provisional License in West Virginia
The company revealed on Monday it was granted a provisional license in West Virginia. This marks the first major step for Hacksaw Gaming on its way to expanding into the growing US regulated gambling market. In fact, the company revealed its plans to go live in the US in the first quarter of next year. The launch is expected to be facilitated via the company’s deal with Light & Wonder.
“We have an exciting strategy for the US and our team is focused on delivering yet more excellent and memorable products to delight that market.“
Christine Bordeaux, SVP of compliance North America at Hacksaw Gaming
Christine Bordeaux, the SVP of compliance North America at Hacksaw, said that expanding in the US is a part of the company’s ambitious growth strategy. At the same time, she explained that Hacksaw’s dedicated team of professionals remains focused on offering unique experiences via the company’s leading products.
“Being granted this license is testimony to the quality of our games portfolio and shows just how robust and engaging our content is.“
Marcus Cordes, CEO at Hacksaw Gaming
Marcus Cordes, Hacksaw’s CEO, deemed the recent provisional license as the first step toward the company’s major expansion in the country. He pointed out that the license reaffirms the quality of Hacksaw’s content and the engaging experiences it offers. Cordes added that the recent license in West Virginia comes on the heels of the company’s licensing in Romania, as well as the Isle of Man from earlier this year. Finally, he explained that this year was stellar for the company.
“This latest expansion comes after our license approvals in Romania and the Isle of Man earlier in 2022, so we’re finishing the year just as strongly as we started it,“
added Cordes
The Company Continues Its North American Expansion
With more states legalizing sports betting and casino gambling, the latest move doesn’t come as a surprise. What’s more, Hacksaw’s license comes after regulated gambling operators in West Virginia reported 60% growth last month when compared to October last year.
While this is Hacksaw’s first license in the US, it isn’t the first one for the company in North America. Back in May 2022, Hacksaw was granted a license in Ontario, Canada’s most populous province. Consequently, in October Hacksaw inked a deal with Loto-Québec. Under the terms of the deal, the company agreed to provide the state-run corporation with iGaming content. For Loto-Québec, the collaboration meant expanding its online casino offering. On the other hand, for Hacksaw, the deal marked an important step in the company’s expansion plans for North America.
Proxy betting brought massive illegal profits to junket operator Suncity Group and its founder and former CEO Alvin Chau, according to Macau’s Judiciary Police (PJ).
Suncity Group Handled over 62,000 Side Bets Between 2013 and 2021
Macau Business reported that during the court hearing of the case against Alvin Chau and 20 other defendants on November 9, a PJ investigator made a PowerPoint presentation lasting over two hours elaborating on extensive evidence showing that Suncity Group was involved in side-betting operations.
According to the police report, Suncity Group facilitated more than 62,000 proxy bets for a total amount of $102.6 billion in the period from 2013 until Chau’s arrest in 2021.
These bets were made across various VIP rooms at different casinos in Macau and several departments of Suncity Group were involved in the proxy betting activities.
The PJ representative brought forward evidence such as tapped phone calls and text messages, including Suncity Group employee group messages, as well as financial statements, internal corporate documents, and many more.
It was also reported that PJ has confiscated instruction manuals made for the employees working for the marketing department and the cage department on handling side bets. This means that a wide range of employees – from the top management to frontline staff communicating directly with customers – were in on and actively engaged in the proxy betting scheme.
PJ Investigator Presentation Caused Controversy
According to the Macau SAR government, the Suncity Group’s under-the-table betting operations have cost them tax revenue amounting to about $1 billion for the period between 2013 and 2021.
This is something the PowerPoint presentation by the PJ representative also touched upon. The investigator elaborated on how the calculation of tax revenue loss was made.
It was noted that the police found two document files, which included information on side bets facilitated by Suncity Group during the period from 2013 to 2021.
These files include 97 side-betting activities involving 62,588 proxy bets with an estimated turnover of $102.4 billion. According to the estimation, these bets accounted for a profit for Chau and his syndicate of $2.6 billion.
However, Alvin Chau’s lawyer argued that this information does not correspond to the data in the tapped phone calls and messages that Alvin Chau exchanged with some of the other defendants in the case.
The PJ investigator’s testimony sparked further arguments between the prosecutor and the lawyers of the defendants.
The lawyers protested that the investigator should have been questioned like other witnesses and should not have been allowed to present evidence via a PowerPoint presentation.
According to the court schedule, the case against Alvin Chau and other defendants is nearing its end with the final arguments scheduled for November 21.
OctoPlay, a newly established iGaming supplier, has launched with three games
These games are part of the company’s “new approach” to first-class player engagement
OctoPlay is headed by a former Red Tiger and Evolution executive Carl Ejlertsson
Image Source: Shutterstock.com
A new iGaming developer has been born with OctoPlay launching its inaugural games portfolio, a first for the company. OctoPlay has been established with the help of numerous content developers and is currently led by former Evolution and Red Tiger executive Carl Ejlertsson. The company already has games that are available with a select number of early adopters who have responded positively to the product and content brought on by OctoPlay.
First Games by OctoPlay Rollout for the New Studio
Among the company’s prominent hires are Nick Vuchev, who serves as commercial director, Martina Borg Stevens who serves as legal and compliance director, and Nicola Vella who serves as finance director.
OctoPlay has developed its proprietary games server to debut Pearly Shores, Heavy Anchor and Hot Harvest, which is the first taste players and operators can get a taste of what the company’s signature style, development director, and overall capabilities will be like. The games are also available to try on OctoPlay’s official website. Commenting on this announcement, Ejlertsson said:
OctoPlay is laser-focused on producing ground-breaking content for regulated markets. Our simple philosophy is to be licensed in every possible jurisdiction on the planet. If a license is available, we will get it as soon as we can.
Ejlertsson felt strongly about the inaugural titles that the company has debuted and said that they demonstrated OctoPlay’s commitment to making sure that players are having a great time. It’s all about delivering great, sustainable, and fun products, the executive noted.
Ejlertsson revealed OctoPlay via a LinkedIn announcement last month. At the time, the executive promised a new approach to “first-class player engagement,” and urged interested parties to stay tuned for more groundbreaking updates.
M88 Mansion has signed Steven Gerrard as brand ambassador
The Asian-focused sportsbook will be building up its presence with fans for the 2022 FIFA World Cup
Gerrard will participate in various digital marketing advertisement campaigns
Image Source: M88 Mansion
M88 Mansion is joining the hype and build-up to the 2022 FIFA World Cup by signing Steven Gerrard, a retired soccer player and present soccer manager, who will serve as the brand’s new ambassador. M88 Mansion has been actively building up its presence in Asia, which it largely considers as its own stomping ground and Gerrard’s figure is prominent in the markets targeted by the company presently.
Gerrard to Give M88 Mansion a Boost with Soccer Fans
The ambassador and the operator will focus on bolstering the company’s positions in the Southeast Asian market and engage with local sports and soccer fans through digital channels and various promotional activities tailored to regional preferences. Gerrard himself was excited to be joining a respected regional sportsbook and said:
“I am delighted to join M88 Mansion as their brand ambassador for the World Cup. I couldn’t be more excited to share my experiences from my time on the field, especially my views and opinion to the Asian sports fans regarding the upcoming World Cup.”
Steven Gerrard
M88 Mansion head of commercial Alan Wafer was similarly pleased to see Gerrard join as part of the company’s 2022 World Cup promotional efforts. He said that having the Liverpool legend and soccer ace join M88 was an honor.
Gerrard scored 186 goals in 710 appearances between 1998 and 2015. He has been a Liverpool loyalist for most of his career before moving to Major League Soccer and supporting LA Galaxy’s grassroots efforts in helping the United States become better at soccer.
Ambassadorships Help Establish Brand Success
Gerrard is also M88’s first official ambassador for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar this month. Previously, the company signed other prominent athletes, such as Manny Pacquiao and Michael Owen. Ambassadorship has been a powerful way to attract new audiences and use the image and likeness of existing athletes to help build up the name and recognition of certain brands.
BRBET teamed up with Mike Tyson ahead of the World Cup as well and is promoting its brand with the legendary boxer’s help. FUN88 also signed Ilker Casillas as the World Cup 2022 ambassador itself. Both FUN88 and M88 Mansion compete in Asian markets.
The 2018 World Cup runners-up are competing in Group F, but bookies don’t think Croatia will win this group. We don’t think so either. In fact, we think the Croats might even struggle to get to the knockout stage of the Qatar World Cup.
Whether they advance or not won’t depend only on them. Actually, we believe that their destiny is in the hands (or should we say legs?) of Canada. If the Canadians do well in their first World Cup in 36 years, Croatia will finish in the bottom half of the Group F table. Of course, this is also because we’re 100% certain Belgium will win the group.
2022 World Cup Group F Winner Prediction – Belgium (-161)
Interestingly enough, Belgium isn’t among the top candidates to win the 2022 World Cup. Instead, bookmakers see this seam as the no.9 favorite to lift the trophy on December 18. They do, however, think the Belgians will win their group.
If this all seems strange, there’s a perfectly easy explanation. The thing is that Belgium has a fantastic roster with players that should be able to dominate Group F. However, the 2022 World Cup bracket is made in such a way that if the Belgians win the group, they will have to take on the runner-up of Group E.
The reason why this is such a problem is that the Group E runner-up is almost certainly going to be one of these two teams – Germany or Spain.
Group F Runner-Up Prediction – Canada (+400)
Now, this may seem like a longshot, but we have an explanation for this pick. The Canadians are going to be super-motivated in Qatar as this is their first World Cup since 1986. Further, these guys are really getting in the mood for soccer, knowing that the next World Cup will be (partially) held in Canada.
That said, the atmosphere is great in Canada’s locker room, but that’s not the only reason why we think they can surprise the odds and finish second in Group F. They also have some really amazing players on the roster – Alphonso Davies, Cyle Larin, Jonathan David, and others.
The best thing is that – unlike those playing for Croatia – most of Canada’s key men are still in their 20s.
Best Group F Prop Bet – Morocco Not to Qualify for Knockouts (-400)
This is probably the safest bet you can make for Group F. We think there’s no way Morocco will advance to the next stage of the tournament in Qatar. These guys might not finish bottom, but we see no scenario in which they’d finish in one of the first two places in the group table.
This, however, doesn’t mean they’re not good. On the contrary, player-by-player, they are more talented than Canada. They’re also probably more athletic than Croatia. However, this team usually doesn’t do great in big matches.
Denby previously worked as deputy CFO at the company
Aristocrat CEO Trevor Croker was particularly pleased with her appointment
Image Source: Aristocrat.com
Aristocrat Leisure Limited, an Australian gaming and entertainment firm, has appointed Sally Denby as its new CFO. The appointment is immediately effective but subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory clearances.
Denby Brings Vast Wealth of Experience
Denby first stepped in a similar position back in February when she was promoted as a deputyCFO, following seven years in various similar financial positions across other companies. She worked at both GE Capital and Nine MSN where she held senior finance leadership positions and cultivate the necessary experience to step into one of her most important positions to date.
Aristocrat was well-aware of Denby’s past track record and was very happy with the appointment. Trevor Croker, Aristocrat CEO & managing director was pleased with the arrival of Denby in her new position and he had this to add on the occasion:
Over her successful career at Aristocrat, Sally has proven to be an outstanding enterprise leader and a trusted finance partner.
Trevor Croker, Aristocrat CEO & managing director
Croker spoke of Denby’s “cultural impact” and “deep engagement” with Aristocrat’s business operations and stated goals. He noted that Denby perfectly understood Aristocrat’s obligations as an ASX-listed company. Croker noted that he already had observed Denby as a deputy CFO and was pleased with her performance, execution and overall motivation to help Aristocrat perform better across the board.
“A comprehensive global search identified Sally as the best candidate to step into the role, at this exciting time in Aristocrat’s growth journey,” he concluded. Aristocrat has been actively hiring and adding to its ranks, reflecting on the company’s quick global expansion.
In October, the company appointed Joe Kaminkow as its chief innovation officer. The company similarly introduced Bill G. Lance Jnr as its non-executive director of the Board. Aristocrat has been making a series of executive and non-executive hires to consolidate its team across the board and help the company steer towards better results.
Just off the freeway in a small suburb in Melbourne’s west is the Kealba Hotel. It looks like any other suburban sports pub: there’s a bistro and a beer garden, an indoor children’s playground, and huge TV screens showing live football matches and horse races.
And there are 86 poker machines. This pub in the middle of Brimbank, Victoria’s third most disadvantaged local government area, has had the dubious distinction, year after year, of being the venue in the state where people lose the most money on the pokies.
Last financial year, nearly $20.5m was lost in this building alone. That’s the equivalent of 391 yearly salaries at the median wage. And yet it’s a small number in the context of a very big, very expensive national problem.
Australia is addicted to gambling. About $25bn is lost to legal forms of gambling every year, according to recent estimates from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Nearly half of this goes into poker machines.
The profits of pokies first and most obviously flow to the casinos, pubs and clubs that own licences to run them. When the chance of landing a jackpot on a poker machine is literally one in 35,640,000, the real jackpot is holding the licence to collect the losses.
But all aspects of Australian life are steeped in gambling money as it flows back and forth through the economy.
A substantial proportion of profits goes to the governments that allow poker machines to run. It flows to state and federal budgets through taxes, and also to political parties through donations.
Some is ploughed back into local communities, typically in the form of support for junior sport, which gives the clubs an effective argument against attempts to rein in their numbers. And many Australians invest in the gaming companies via their superannuation funds, including some marketed as “socially aware”, completing a circle that makes reducing harm from problem gambling such an intractable problem.
Most pokies losses come from the pockets of the poor
The worst losses happen in communities where people can least afford it.
In Victoria, where the data available is most robust, the largest amount of money is lost on pokies in Brimbank – $128m in the last financial year, despite pubs and clubs being closed for months due to Covid lockdowns. The previous financial year, it was more than $92m. In Greater Dandenong, the second-most disadvantaged local government area in Victoria, gamblers lost $102m in the last financial year.
expenditure per capita and seifa index
There were more than 29,000 poker machines in the state at the end of last year. The Victorian government collected more than $2.2bn in gambling taxes and expects to collect $2.4bn this financial year – $1.2bn of it from pokies.
In New South Wales, things are worse: the state has by far the highest concentration of pokies in the country, with 86,640 machines in its pubs and clubs.
And the most money is lost in western Sydney. More than $900m was lost in the local government areas of Fairfield and Canterbury-Bankstown on 8,578 machines in the last financial year . Fairfield is ranked as the city’s most disadvantaged area, with Canterbury-Bankstown not far behind.
The NSW government expects to rake in $3.26bn this financial year from gambling taxes.
One of the oft-repeated phrases by defenders of legal gambling is the benefit to the public from the taxes imposed on the industry. But as the data shows, this is money coming directly from the pockets of the people who have the least to lose, and who are losing it on machines that are designed to addict them.
“It’s impossible to describe how effective they are,” says Monash University associate professor Charles Livingstone, who has been researching pokies for more than two decades. “They are enormously efficient at getting people to keep putting money into them. It’s a highly addictive product that targets well-known psychological processes and stimulates the release of brain chemicals that make people feel good … and the clubs bank on it.”
Anti-pokies campaigners estimate at least 40% of losses from poker machines come from gamblers already at risk of or experiencing gambling harm, which can reach devastating levels.
There has been no shortage of attempts to curb the harm. A 2010 Productivity Commission report recommended a host of reforms, including $1 bet limits on poker machines and mandatory pre-commitment systems that would allow players to set a universal limit on their losses.
The Gillard government’s 2012 national gambling reform bill included pre-commitment systems, but stopped short of $1 bet limits. The pre-commitment systems were abandoned in the face of pressure from the clubs and hotel industry lobbyists, particularly Clubs NSW and the Australian Hotels Association, who threatened a marginal seat campaign against her minority government.
Where the pokies are
In 2015, the Coalition government under Tony Abbott announced a review into online gambling, led by the former NSW premier Barry O’Farrell. O’Farrell’s review made 19 recommendations, including that companies be required to regularly send itemised activity statements to online gamblers clearly showing how much money they had bet, won and lost, and to set up a national self-exclusion register. The government agreed in principle to all but one of the reforms, but no legislation was brought forward.
Since then, the market has exploded, with online gambling advertising at saturation level. While some restrictions still apply, particularly around broadcast advertisements, it’s impossible to escape the billboards, placards, decals and online advertising, let alone attend a sporting match without betting odds flashing from every screen pushing the gambling brands whose logos are emblazoned across players’ uniforms.
Punters play poker machines in Tamworth, NSW. Photograph: Tracey Nearmy/AAP
But there are small signs change may be in the air.
The inquiry into casino operator Crown Resorts in Victoria last year found a string of licence breaches and conduct described by the commissioner as “variously illegal, dishonest, unethical and exploitative”, including towards the company’s treatment of people experiencing gambling harm. Similar findings have emerged in relation to Star, which has been found to be unsuitable to hold a casino licence in NSW and Queensland.
A report from the NSW Crime Commission, handed down last month, found that large sums of the proceeds of crime were being gambled in pokies.
Yet shadows of the clubs’ campaign against the Gillard government are looming as NSW Labor resists offering bipartisan support to the Liberal premier, Dominic Perrottet, as he edges towards industry reform.
All this has occurred as both parties seek to shore up their positions ahead of the NSW state election in March, making the question of what role pokies will play in that poll inescapable.
Since its election in May, the federal Labor government has begun rolling out the relatively small but significant reforms recommended by the O’Farrell review. In October, a Senate inquiry was established into online gambling and its impacts on those experiencing gambling harm. More than 50 submissions have been received so far. One writer, who has been diagnosed with severe gambling disorder, described the industry as “a playground of madness”.
Perhaps the most unexpected shift in the wind has come from Tasmania, where the gambling lobby’s influence has previously been most striking. In September the Liberal government announced that it would introduce a mandatory pre-commitment scheme. While experts say the design has holes, it’s nevertheless a step towards harm minimisation that seemed completely off the table just a year ago.
The recent inquiries “have lifted a rock”, Livingstone says. “And once you lift the rock and see what’s squirming around underneath it, you have to act.”
