888 pulls poker product from Australia
London-listed firm says decision was made “with no regulation in sight other than sport”
888 Holdings has pulled its poker product from Australia today, ahead of a potential crackdown on non-sports betting operators.
The operator emailed its Australian customers last week saying accounts would be closed Monday and all funds should be withdrawn.
Yaniv Sherman, 888’s head of business development, told EGR Intel this morning: “There is nothing special about today, we always had a limited offering in that market anyway so there was limited potential.
“The market is going in another direction with no regulation in sight other than sport, so we made a business decision. It’s a small market for us anyway.”
The move follows a proposed amendment to Australian gambling laws, which would clamp down on foreign non-sports betting companies.
Under the proposed rule changes, unlicensed operators could face domain and payment-blocking measures, as well as fines of up to AU$1.35m (£0.84m) per day for individuals and $6.75m (£4.2m) for companies.
The legislation has already forced Amaya to reconsider its PokerStars operations in Australia, while all Intertain-owned brands were pulled from the country in late December.