Betfair have not only been the word on the lips of sport betting experts around the world, recently they’ve well and truly broken onto the financial pages. Their share offering raised around $2bn for their already bulging money clips and now the owners are indulging in their favourite TV program fantasy – becoming part of Baywatch and maybe making a “video” with Pamela Anderson.
Well we’re assuming this is the rationale behind them setting up an office on the other side of the pond in California. If the opportunity to star in their own episode of the show wasn’t enough, the golden state is expected to be one of the first to offer some kind of legalized betting. That got your attention didn’t it Betfair!?
An article on the FT.com, which contains an interview with Betfair Group CEO David Yu, a native of the Bay Area, suggests that the company is looking at the US state in terms of expansion.
Betfair has made investments in Watercooler, a social networking developer, and more intriguingly TVG – a legal Tote based betting system they purchased for $50m. They’re hoping this will help them to gain an advantage when California’s residents can bet on racing using an exchange by May 2012.
Yu goes on to explain the growth in mobile being an area they will aim to exploit also, but his comments on the US will be of utmost interest to those in the industry also awaiting any US regulation that materializes.
