BetBright is shutting down after being acquired by 888
Last week we learned that 888 Holdings had bought the online bookmaker BetBright for £15 million. The acquisition is a part of the long-term goals of the company. The main strategy of 888 consists of buying sportsbook technology which can then be scaled.
What does the CEO has to say?
According to the CEO of 888 Itai Pazner, the company believes that this purchase will improve their long-term prospects and increase the variety of offers. That way 888 hopes to differentiate itself from other competitors. He also praises the team that worked on the BetBright platform and said that he looks forward to seeing them in action for 888.
Itai Panzer recently replaced Itai Frieberger as the CEO of 888 and he isn’t wasting any time in trying to bring changes to the company. In a recent interview with Gambling Insider, he mentioned that he wants to see the company have a bigger hold of the sports betting market. 888 also wants to improve its influence in as many countries as possible. We’re looking forward to seeing if this becomes a reality.
That’s not the first purchase that 888 have made recently. They also acquired Jet’s brands for digital bingo to improve their influence in this area of gambling. The purchase was worth £18m and includes the whole Mandaley portfolio (City Bingo, Sing Bingo, and Costa Bingo).
Is BetBright shutting down?
However, on the next day, it was announced that customers would no longer be able to access BetBright’s services. Gamblers will still be able to log into their accounts for the next month to withdraw the remaining funds that they have there. The bets that are still unsettled after 5th March won’t count. Those of them who are multi-bets and currently winning but still have unsettled wagers will be paid out (only those that won).
This decision angered a lot of punters who placed ante-post wagers at BetBright. That’s why 888 also added that it would pay out the Cheltenham Festival bets made on horse racing. At the moment there is no additional information for the bets placed on other sports, so currently, only those for the Cheltenham Festival will be settled. 888 are sponsors of Nottingham Forest, and their logo can be seen on the shirt. The football club said that it has entered a discussion with both sides.
The biggest question was if BetBright’s player will be transferred to 888. At the moment, 888 finds it impossible to move all of them to their platform. 888 are working hard to find a solution to this problem. At the moment, the Gambling Commission is leading an investigation into the subject of unsettled bets with BetBright. We will continue to monitor this situation and give you updates as it unfolds.
