Betfair and IbetX Vie for Sporting Options Punters
Betfair and IbetX Vie for Sporting Options Punters
Monday 22nd November 2004
Following Betfair’s proposal of a rescue package for former customers of stricken betting exchange, Sporting Options, IbetX.com has countered with a deal of their own, designed to attract punters left out of pocket by the company’s collapse. IBetX has announced that all Sporting Options customers opening an IBetX account will receive £1,500 in credit or 25% of their outstanding balance, whichever is the lowest.
Last week Betfair said that they intended to compensate around 5000 of Sporting Options 5300 clients in an effort to restore public faith in the security of the betting exchange model. 'Our rescue package reflects Betfair's commitment to the betting exchange punter and to the nascent betting exchange industry. It is a testament to Betfair's financial strength that we are in a position to be able to do this,' said Stephen Hill, Betfair CEO.
'Protecting customers' funds should be a condition of a bookmaker's licence and further, the new Gambling Commission should have the power to conduct spot-check audits of online and bricks and mortar bookmakers to ensure that this is the case,' he added.
At the weekend it emerged that Sporting Options biggest creditor was one of the company’s founders, Kevin Griffiths, who is owed over £1 million. He is understood to have injected 80,000 into the troubled betting exchange just weeks before administrators were called in to close it down.
