FBI takes aim at Polymarket, Better Collective to lay off 300 people

The FBI has raided the New York home of Shayne Coplan, founder of the prediction market platform Polymarket. Investigators are targeting Polymarket over allegations that it accepted money from US-based residents for prediction contracts related to the US Presidential election, despite a ban preventing the company from offering services to US residents.

Business & finance

Better Collective has confirmed in its latest third-quarter results that the company will proceed with the layoff of more than 300 team members. The company did not say that this was a reason for immediate concern, but it acknowledged the growing cost of doing business in the United States and the challenges that lie ahead in the newly-fledged Brazilian market.

Brazil has indeed proved a difficult market for doing business by the looks of it as Super Group said that Betway and a number of sister brands will be withdrawing from the market and not pursuing growth locally.

At the same time, DraftKings is looking to expand into prediction markets – the type of forecast event popularized by Kalshi and Polymarket, which could now be endorsed by the sports betting company as it seeks to satisfy the demand for placing predictions on non-betting events such as the US Presidential elections.

Lithuania has become the latest country in the European Union to introduce a blanket ban on gambling advertisements, with a grace period running through January 1, 2028, when the full ban will come into force.

New Zealand is in the process of introducing a license-based regime for its online gambling industry, but an initial proposal to have dozens of gambling licenses has now been revisited, and the Oceanic country is likely to end up with 15 online casino licenses as a result.

Xpoint has secured a legal win against rival GeoComply in Florida. The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that the defendant had not breached intellectual property laws, which GeoComply stipulated in its complaint.

A Louisiana bill that would have sought to raise the state’s tax on sports betting to 51% from its current 15% has been put on the backburner by its sponsor. "The math doesn’t math," Rep. Roger Wilder said during a committee hearing, promising to bring up HB2 in the legislators’ focus after planned revisions to its text.

Responsible gambling

As Safer Gambling Week 2024 is just around the corner, Casino Guru is happy to announce that it will be hosting a webinar presented by BetBlocker, a respected self-exclusion tool, which will seek to tackle numerous industry-related topics, with a particular emphasis on player protection, positive & safer play. The discussion will be joined by

• Pedro Romero- Chief of SG Partnerships, BetBlocker
• Katie Reynolds-Jones - Chief Marketing Officer, GamStop
• Šimon Vincze - Head of Sustainable & Safer Gambling, Casino Guru
• Kate Graham - Vulnerability and Accessibility Manager, Monzo
• Duncan Garvie - Founder, BetBlocker

You may find out more about the upcoming webinar set to take place on Tuesday, November 19 here.

In the meantime, a new survey based on the Young People and Gambling Report 2024 suggests that there has been a notable increase in the age group between 11 and 17-year-olds who now register 4+ or higher on the DSM-IV-MR-J scale, which is used to assess problem gambling behavior.

The UK Gambling Commission noted that most activities leading to addictive practices were very possibly tied to legitimate and non-age-restricted products. The Guardian, a media outlet that has been repeatedly critical of the industry, argued that some 85,000 children may now be classified as problem gamblers in the country based on extrapolation from the regulator’s data.

The voice of the industry

This week Casino Guru News had the opportunity to catch up with ARRISE Affiliate ManagerAnastasios Ioannidiswho spoke about Pragmatic Play’s most recent successes, and a bumper year for the company as a whole.

Ioannidis touched on Pragmatic Play’s latest achievements and the launching of a number of prominent games and titles, along with clever initiatives designed to boost retention and engagement.

Casino Guru News also had the pleasure of publishing Ivan Kurochkin’s detailed breakdown of the United Arab Emirates gambling market, offering a deep understanding and insight into the current regulatory framework, expected changes, and what the future holds. For anyone looking to understand the emerging gambling industry in the Middle East, this analysis is a must-read.

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