UK bookmaker Pagebet collapses, Stan James rides to rescue

Leisure & Gambling aren’t the only bookmakers who’ve hit a rough patch this week. Serious financial losses at northeast UK bookies Pagebet have resulted in administrators shuttering 23 of the company’s 53 betting shops. Stan James has stepped in to backstop 27 other shops as well as guarantee deposits and unpaid winnings, while Newcastle’s Platinum Leisure will take over three more shops. On a hopefully unrelated note, a new Betsson-backed online casino, MrGreen.com has just launched in the UK. Let’s hope they’ve got enough ‘green’ to avoid the administrators’ ire. Read more.