BetDirect moves to Gibraltar
Online casino and poker operator 32Red announced recently that it would be relocating its online sports-betting business BetDirect from Liverpool to Gibraltar during the course of this summer. BetDirect is a relatively new member of the 32Red family, having been purchased for about £11 million in June of last year. The acquisition was intended to strengthen 32Red's portfolio of betting and gaming products, but the newly acquired business has struggled against strong competition from other UK sports-betting firms. The move to Gibraltar is designed to move BetDirect into profitability by taking advantage of the tax breaks that the British overseas territory offers, and it is also logistical, as it aims to locate its entire operation under one roof.
It is anticipated that shifting its BetDirect business out of the UK will create at least 70 new jobs in Gibraltar, and the company is expected to relocate to larger premises to accommodate the move. Whilst 32Red currently employs about 50 members of staff in its Gibraltar office, at this time only seven of them are locals. Nevertheless, 32Red enjoys operating out of Gibraltar, having been fully based there since the company's launch in 2002. 32Red's website cites Gibraltar's highly educated workforce, extensive communications infrastructure, and well-regulated finance centre as prime grounds for having chosen to establish itself on the Rock. Indeed, 32Red's Development Director Ed Andrewes gives Gibraltar two thumbs up, saying that it "remains the premier European jurisdiction for remote gaming."
The company was keen to retain as many members of its Liverpool team as possible, and offered relocation packages to entice key members to the Rock. However, it is believed that only a small minority are willing to take up the offer to relocate. Andrewes went on to say that the majority of the new roles created by the move to Gibraltar will therefore be filled by Gibraltarians. The news was welcomed by Gibraltar's online gaming community, which is still recovering from a series of job losses caused by changes in U.S. gaming laws.
No room at the inn?
It is a measure of a person's success in any line of work when he is in the position to turn down prospective business. This is the enviable position that the government of Gibraltar finds itself in regarding the issuing of new remote gaming licenses to online gaming companies.
Gaming contributes about £10 million a year to the Gibraltar government in one way or another. However, the Ministry of Finance is keeping tabs on how many gaming licenses it issues, with only 15 companies in total holding this elusive prize at present. Despite interest from numerous prospective entrants, the Gibraltar government prides itself on being in a position to handpick the gaming firms it awards licenses. According to the Ministry of Finance's Gambling Division, since the industry is largely self-regulated, only operators with a proven track record will be considered. Other factors include the company's pedigree, its financial standing, as well as whether the company has a realistic business plan.
Gibraltar strives to attract the sort of companies that in the words of Chief Minister Peter Caruana are willing to "grasp the highest standards" in order to protect the industry's reputation as well as that of Gibraltar. He is acutely aware that they may already be over-relying on the gaming industry, and he remains wary about putting all of Gibraltar's eggs into one basket. There are other issues at stake, too, such as the unnecessary pressures that having more gaming companies located on the Rock would place on an already strained telecommunications infrastructure. Importantly, Gibraltar's physical size should not be forgotten; being only approximately 6.5 square kilometers, there are insufficient high-quality commercial premises to accommodate too many more large international corporations.
Whilst Gibraltar is being sensible in its approach to inviting new entrants to the Rock, no one is ruling out the issuing of new licenses in the future. In recent weeks, Partouche, one of France's biggest gaming companies and casino operators, has been touted as a possible new arrival on the Rock.
Tristan Cano lives and writes about the gaming industry in Gibraltar.
Operators Licensed in Gibraltar as of April 2007:
1 - Ladbrokes International Ltd. - Fixed-odds, casino
2 - Victor Chandler (International) Ltd. - Fixed-odds, casino
3 - Eurobet (Gibraltar) Ltd. - Casino
4 - Stan James (Gibraltar) Ltd. - Fixed-odds, casino
5 - Bwin International Ltd. - Fixed-odds, casino
6 - Carmen Media Group Ltd. - Fixed-odds, casino
7 - St. Minver Ltd. - Casino
8 - 32Red Plc - Fixed-odds, casino
9 - Digibet Ltd. - Fixed-odds
10 - 888.com Plc [Cassava Enterprises (Gibraltar) Ltd.] - Casino
11 - Globet.com Group Ltd. - Fixed-odds, casino
12 - International Betting Association Ltd. - Fixed-odds
13 - Mansion (Gibraltar) Ltd. - Fixed-odds and Betting Exchange, casino
14 - PartyGaming Plc (Denicrest Holdings Ltd.) (ElectraWorks Ltd.) - Fixed-odds, casino
15 - FuturesBetting.com Ltd. - Spread betting
