Australian Spread Betting And Online Gaming Developments Afoot; Centrebet Punting On Aussie Stock Exchange, by Greg Tingle - 10th March 2010

Gaming and betting giant, Centrebet, has become the virgin agency down under in Australia to offer betting on local financial markets, beating James Packer's 50% owned Betfair and the government TAB to the punch, with plans to also expand into equity and commodity betting and beyond in the coming months ahead.

It's well known that Aussie's are known to bet on anything (including two flies up a wall or Two-up contests on Australia's iconic beaches like Bondi and Maroubra). Now betting on the outcome of Reserve Bank board meetings has been in vogue among Aussie punters, however Centrebet is looking to lure new customers keen to bet on movements in an index of the top 200 listed companies.

At the time of publication Centrebet only has just one product, that being a choice of three closing levels for the S&P/ASX 200 on March 31.

Centrebet spokesman and man in the know Neil Evans, said bets could be made until the market close on March 31. "It is a straight up-and-down betting book, but it is a futures book,".

"We do not have to take it to the ASX or anyone else and ask for clearance."

The index closed at 4807.9 points on Monday, and Centrebet's odds were favouring a decline over the next three weeks.

Centrebet's gambling licence is issued by the Northern Territory government and allowed it to take bets on a range of markets, Mr Evans said. It is well known that Australian gambling licences are difficult to obtain, and Centrebet will be looking to make the most of theirs, as a number of overseas concerns are eyeing off Australia and the Asia Pacific region in a gold rush type fashion. "Never mind the State Of Origin between NSW, QLD and VIC, this is an International Test Series", a prominent media and gaming identity told Media Man.

Betting on financial markets is not a new concept, with competitor Betfair offering odds on movements in London's FTSE index and Wall Street and taking bets on changes in the cash rate in Australia, Europe the United States and Britain. But this is the first time bets have been offered on Australian financial markets.

This news follows the high profile InterTrader deal between PartyGaming and London Capital Group in January.

TAB's current licence prevents it from offering financial betting, a spokesman advised. Betfair could not be contacted at the time of publication.

Australia remains a world top ten gambling nation and is known for its volatile "casino economy".

*The writer is a special contributor for Gambling911

*Media Man is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal development company operating in approximately a dozen vertical markets http://www.mediamanint.com

*The writer has some b2b internet dealings with PartyGaming, Betfair and Centerbet brands