Betfair Plays Central Role In Fallon Charges

International online betting exchange Betfair, has become a key factor in a current extended criminal inquiry into activities of Kieren Fallon, the one time champion jockey, along with seven additional parties who are being charged with having formed a conspiracy with the intent of committing fraud, according to recent UK media reports. Betfair is at the center of the of the investigation due to the fact that key evidence is linked with suspected crooked betting patterns first seen on that website.

Betfair is known for its size, creating around GBP 5.2 billion in revenues in 2005 alone. The site reserves the right to employ highly advanced technical tracking software, and does this in order to meet its obligation to sports regulatory bodies to identify and note any betting activity that seems suspicious, and to make available to the official government regulators any necessary account information.

Andrew Black first set up the company in the year 2000, having created the Internet betting website while working on his own laptop computer, working during his free time. There are today close to a thousand people working for the company which claims over 800 thousand customer accounts, from all over the world. It is said that there are approximately 12,000 bets being placed every meant on the site. What makes Betfair unique is that it allows clientele to take the odds being offered by other website gamblers. This means that one player might establish odds on the site and then wait to see of there are other customers are willing to pick up the wager.

Customers set up accounts where their wagers are kept. The site earns money by charging a fee, which is in the form of a percentage of winnings. Although it is a tradition for such establishments to cease setting odds once a match or contest begins, Betfair is unwu in that it allows its customers to continue to place wagers as the events are in progress. Because of this, the odds can vary during the actual event.
Concerning the tracking and reporting on unusual betting activity, Betfair spokesman A spokesperson for Betfair, Jack Houghton has said that the tracking and reporting on strange betting action, is necessary in order to maintain the integrity and openness of sports. He says that Betfair’s high-level technological capability makes it possible for the site to make available to requiring regulatory agencies the information that is necessary to achieve this.

In 2006, it is expected that Internet wagering will increase by 22%. It has already become a $12 billion plus business worldwide. Betfair on its own is believed to have received over GBP 1 billion, just on the World Cup.

The emergence of the British Gambling Act, that takes effect in 2007, is thought to be the result of the massive scale of growth that is being seen in the online gaming industry. Under this act, The Gambling Commission functions as the regulatory body and is appointed under the Act.

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