The surprising news that is coming from gambling markets recently is the exit of PokerStars from megamarkets of China, Macau and Taiwan.
The decision, according to Flutter Entertainment Plc, has been taken due to potential regulatory issues arising in these countries.
PokerStars is one of the world’s fastest growing casino and was previously owned by The Stars Group. Not a long ago, The Stars Group was acquired by Flutter Entertainment and now forms Flutter Entertainment Plc. This acquisition was done by the Flutter Entertainment to take entry into markets of these countries. However, the exit of one of the most popular brands of this company has left industrialists in shock.
The reason, according to Flutter Entertainment is the regulatory issues constantly arising in these countries. The law on online poker is not very clear in China and the Beijing moved to ban it in 2018. The government also banned transfer of crypto-currency to poker sites and went so far as to silence to talk of poker on popular messaging apps.
The taking over of the Stars Group, a $12.2 billion entity, made UK based Flutter entertainment the world’s largest online gaming entity. The departure of PokerStars from the markets of China, Macau and Taiwan was made effective from September 1, 2020.
This exit would result in an $86.23 million charge against earnings.
In an interview with Fox Business, Flutter Entertainment stated that, “There were a small number of The Stars Group jurisdictions that Flutter had previously determined it would not operate in and in such cases, these markets are being switched off”.
If experts are to be believed, Flutter Entertainment now intends to focus all of its resources on US wagering markets, specifically sports market, as it has access to US markets via online sports betting platforms such as Fan Duel and Fox Bet.