Economy
Sportsbooks Fined By Ohio Commission
The online gambling industry in the United States continues to grow as new states adopt the legislation required to license and regulate operators. It was Ohio’s turn to do so on the 1st of January by signing House Bill 29 into law and allowing online bookmakers to apply for a license issued by the state’s Casino Control Commission.
Shortly after putting the framework in place, Ohio issued 23 type A licenses that allow operators to offer online sports betting services via mobile apps and websites. However, shortly after going live, three bookies breached the gambling advertising rules and received fines for their actions.
What Led to the Fines Handed by Ohio’s Regulator?
Upon receiving their type A license, all operators agreed to follow strict rules regarding sports betting advertising. The regulations do not allow any use of “risk-free” or “free” bets and need to have a clear message in order to prevent problem gambling
However, in the rush of launching their websites, at least three bookmakers active in Ohio failed to respect the advertising restrictions and are now facing hefty fines. BetMGM, DraftKings, and Ceasers are online sportsbooks that repeatedly broke their promise not to promote free bets when the customers are required to risk their own funds. In addition, the Ohio Casino Control Commission established that the same companies did not include a clear message about the dangers of problem gambling in their communications.
Therefore, the brands will have to pay a $150,000 fine for not respecting the guidelines stipulated by the Commission. To make things even worse, this comes after all the licensed bookies received a warning on the 30th of December, 2022, about following these specific rules.
Ohio’s Casino Control Commission executive director, Matt Schuler, said that the bookmakers got several memos about the rules regarding promotions and advertising. However, some of them continue to disregard the law leaving the commission with no choice but to seek penalties.
The Bookmakers’ Position
Caesars Sportsbook
Of course, the companies targeted with fines had the chance to express their stance on the events. Caesars sportsbook, through their assistant general counsel Jeff Hendricks said they are sorry that the issue was identified since they were eager to cooperate with the commission to settle things.
In their case, the rules were broken by an affiliate campaign on Twitter that had a Free Bonus Offer of $100 as a promotional free bet. However, the punter had to make a $20 deposit to be able to enjoy the so-called “free bet”.
DraftKings Sportsbook promised a Free Bonus
Even though the operator highlighted that they are committed to respecting the highest standards of responsible gambling and player protection, DraftKings refused to comment on the fine they’re targeted with.
In this case, the penalty amount could be even higher since the online bookmaker is accused of sending around 2,500 ads to potential customers under 21, who are not allowed to place bets. For this breach of regulations, the operator could receive a $350,000 fine as the investigations are underway.
BetMGM Sportsbook
Finally, BetMGM was also notified about their wrong steps regarding sports betting advertising compliance. The company refused to comment on the events while reassuring its customers that responsible gambling is of utmost importance for the brand.
Even so, the State of Ohio made it very clear that the companies that massively advertise betting on sports need to be aware that their actions are being closely watched.
Other Sanctions Handed by OCCC
This string of fines applied by the Ohio Casino Control Commission is not the first of its kind. Earlier in December, Barstool Sportsbook also received a notice of violation regarding an event that took place on the Toledo University campus. The regulations clearly state that advertising near or on college campuses is forbidden, and Barstool could receive a $250,000 fine for failing to comply.
Overall, the total sum of the proposed sanctions exceeds $1 million, and the commission shows no signs of slowing down. The regulators want to send a clear message to all licensed online bookmakers – follow the rules or pay the price.
Final Thoughts
It is clear that the Ohio Casino Control Commission is determined to follow the law to the letter and not let operators get away with even minor mistakes. This approach is fantastic for player protection and avoiding serious gambling disorders. However, it may cause some bookmakers to reduce their activities in the state, resulting in less income received through online betting taxation.
One thing is sure though, the online gambling industry in the United States continues its spectacular growth. From a market size of $9,5 billion in 2021, the estimates for 2023 are more than optimistic, despite regulators’ strictness.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited recorded a 0.06 per cent loss on Friday as a result of the selling pressure on some blue-chip stocks at the bourse.
It was observed that the decline was mainly driven by the poor performances of financial and industrial goods shares during the trading session.
Data obtained by Business Post showed that the insurance space lost 1.01 per cent, the industrial goods counter depreciated by 0.66 per cent, the banking sector declined by 0.25 per cent, and the consumer goods category shed 0.21 per cent, while the energy index remained flat.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) moderated by 31.55 points to 54,892.53 points from 54,924.08 points, and the market capitalisation went down by N18 billion to N29.903 trillion from N29.921 trillion.
A total of 137.6 million shares valued at N3.9 billion exchanged hands in 2,912 deals on the last trading session of the week compared with the 117.9 million shares worth N1.4 billion traded in the preceding session in 2,575 deals, representing an improvement in the trading volume, value and the number of deals by 16.71 per cent, 178.57 per cent, and 13.09 per cent, respectively.
Fidelity Bank closed the session as the most traded equity after it sold 21.5 million units and was trailed by GTCO, which sold 14.9 million units. Neimeth traded 14.0 million shares, UBA exchanged 12.8 million equities, and Transcorp traded 8.9 million stocks.
Investor sentiment was slightly strong yesterday as the market breadth was positive with 13 price gainers and 11 price losers led by AIICO Insurance, which fell by 5.00 per cent to 57 Kobo.
Linkage Assurance depleted by 4.76 per cent to 40 Kobo, Coronation Insurance went down by 4.76 per cent to 40 Kobo, International Breweries depreciated by 2.25 per cent to N4.35, and Transcorp lost 2.19 per cent to trade at N1.34.
On the flip side, NPF Microfinance gained 6.94 per cent to finish at N1.85, Geregu Power appreciated by 6.25 per cent to N323.00, Lasaco Assurance rose by 5.00 per cent to N1.05, Chams grew by 4.17 per cent to 25 Kobo, and Japaul improved by 3.57 per cent to 29 Kobo.
Analysis of the market data indicated losses reported by BUA Cement (1.60 per cent), Nigerian Breweries (0.55 per cent), GTCO (0.25 per cent), and Zenith Bank (0.15 per cent) caused the downfall of the exchange on Friday.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The market capitalisation of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a 5.3 per cent appreciation at the final session for the week, Friday, March 24, to close at N1.01 trillion from N959.06 billion on Thursday.
Business Post reports that this is the second time the value of the NASD OTC exchange would cross the N1 trillion mark.
The first was when Access Bank Plc was admitted to the alternative stock exchange in March 2022 and about a year later, it again crossed the same mark after Purple Real Estate Income Plc joined the platform on Thursday and began trading the next day.
Meanwhile, the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) grew by 0.5 points or 0.07 per cent yesterday to wrap the session at 730.37 points compared with 729.87 points recorded in the previous session.
The day’s single price gainer was Geo-Fluids Plc, which improved its value by 16 Kobo to close at N1.80 per share versus Thursday’s closing price of N1.64 per share.
The volume of securities traded by investors depreciated on Friday by 67.3 per cent to 1.7 million units from 5.2 million units, the value of transactions slumped by 87.2 per cent to N3.1 million from N24.3 million, while the number of deals decreased by 78.6 per cent to three deals from the 14 deals carried out in the previous trading day.
Geo-Fluids Plc remained the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 462.1 million units valued at N505.0 million, UBN Property Plc stood in second place with 365.8 units valued at N309.5 million, while IGI Plc was in third place with 71.1 million units valued at N5.1 million.
In terms of the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, VFD Group Plc was on top of the chart for exchanging 7.3 million units worth N1.7 billion, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 462.1 million units valued at N505.0 million, and UBN Property Plc with 365.8 million units valued at N309.5 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a mixed bag for the Naira at the foreign exchange (forex) market on Friday as its value closed stronger against the United States Dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) side of the market but was weaker in the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) and the parallel market.
Data showed that the local currency gained 34 Kobo or 0.07 per cent against its American counterpart to trade at N461.33/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N461.67/$1.
It was observed that the Nigerian currency gained weight during the session despite being pressed by FX demand pressure, resulting in the sale of $241.38 million worth of forex at the close of transactions, $161.35 million or 66.8 per cent higher than the $80.03 million recorded in the preceding session.
In the P2P window, the domestic currency lost N1 against the US Dollar to settle at N756/$1, in contrast to the N755/$1 it was sold a day earlier.
In the same vein, the Naira depreciated against the greenback in the black market yesterday by N1 to close at N743/$1 compared with Thursday’s closing rate of N742/$1.
However, in the interbank segment, the Nigerian Naira closed flat against the Pound Sterling and the Euro on Friday at N566.08/£1 and N497.72/€1, respectively.
In a related development, the digital currency market was in the red as most of the tokens tracked by Business Post depreciated in price, as the markets reacted to the latest Federal Reserve interest rate hike. The Fed opted to increase rates by 25 basis points (bps) as many had anticipated and signalled one more hike this year.
Bitcoin (BTC) slid by 3.0 per cent to $27,458.80, Ethereum (ETH) dropped 3.8 per cent to $1,745.28, Solana (SOL) lost 6.3 per cent to trade at $20.61, Litecoin (LTC) went down by 2.9 per cent to $92.64, Dogecoin (DOGE) shrank by 2.3 per cent to $0.0748, Cardano (ADA) declined by 2.2 per cent to $0.3586, and Binance Coin (BNB) went down by 1.1 per cent to trade at $323.15, while Ripple (XRP) appreciated by 2.2 per cent to $0.4465, with Binance USD (BUSD) and the US Dollar Tether (USDT) flat at $1.00 apiece.
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