PUNTERS today showed they cannot get enough of
the online Texas Holdem poker craze whether they
are gamblers or stock market investors.
Internet gaming stock Sportingbet announced the
postponement of its latest results and a
substantial fund-raising exercise, possibly via
a rights issue, yet shares in the group jumped a
further 3p to 103p.
Sportingbet said it is in advanced talks to
acquire a new online
Texas Holdem
poker business to supersede its current
operation.
Online poker has become one of the
fastest-growing segments of the gaming market
and it is understood Sportingbet wants to buy a
business with a large enough user base to enable
its existing customers to get round a virtual
internet poker table at will.
Postponement of the financial results, due
tomorrow, suggests the deal is close.
About £36m in debt at it last update,
Sportingbet said it will be raising equity to
finance the transaction.
The company said results for the 16 months to
end July will be in line with its previous
guidance, with operating profit before goodwill
and exceptional costs, of not less than £21.7m.
Current trading during the first few weeks of
the busy sports season is in line with
expectations, it added.
