Online gaming shares leapt more than a third in response to US crackdown
Bwin.party, the newly merged combination of sportsbook group Bwin and poker site operator PartyGaming, leapt more than a third, rising 44.3 to 175.3p. Analysts said the European gaming operator could be the biggest beneficiary of the high-profile bust by the US authorities as punters switch to legal sites, improving their liquidity and the potential size of payouts.
Smaller rival 888, which last week broke off merger talks with Ladbrokes, saw its shares rebound 5.75 to 40.5p.
Playtech, the software provider to gambling industry, was the other main winner, with the shares jumping 36.36 to 352.11p.
In a dramatic swoop against PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker, US authorities closed down the sites in America, claiming they had “concocted an elaborate criminal fraud” to trick and bribe banks into “massive money laundering and bank fraud”.
Charges were levelled at 11 people, with the founders of the three sites facing up to 20 years in jail if found guilty of breaching US anti-gambling and money laundering laws.
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