Exclusive: Winamax to launch US-facing poker offering

French poker operator Winamax will launch a free-play poker site targeting the US market ahead of potential regulation, and will also go live with a Facebook application this week, CEO Canel Frichet (pictured) has told eGaming Review.

Frichet said that the company, which overtook PokerStars to become the leading poker operator in the French market in January this year, is well-placed to become a leading operator in a regulated US market having been able to successfully negotiate the difficult conditions in its current jurisdiction.

“The fiscal and regulatory structure is so complex in France that we feel that we would know how to navigate any American model, either interstate or federal,” she said.

She went on to reveal that Winamax is currently looking for American partners, and has recently gone live with a US-facing website, with a free-play offering to launch in the coming weeks. This will mark the operator’s first move into a market outside of France.

Winamax will also launch a Facebook application this week, with Frichet telling eGR that the company’s proprietary software allows it to respond quickly to new developments in the market: “Our independence is what allows us to be highly reactive, a necessity for any internet company. We develop everything in-house.

“A Facebook application will launch next week, using the same poker network [as the free-play site], and this will be the first time such a high quality network will be made available on Facebook,” she said.