Major Wall Street Firms Holding Paper On Internet Gambling Sites Being Traded on London Stock Exchange.

Even though the United States federal government is saying that  Internet gambling is an illegal activity, many of the leading Wall Street firms see online firms as a great investment opportunity.  Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, and Goldman Sachs are examples of the major investment houses on Wall Street that are investing. These investments in online gambling companies only serve to give emphasis to the conflict that exists between the U.S. federal government’s position on online gambling and the actuality that the industry is not only here to stay but that it is a flourishing business as well.

The above mentioned investment firms are currently holding millions of dollars in investments in such online gambling interests as SportingBet and BetOnSports.  These are companies that are now being freely traded on the London Stock Exchange and that are based overseas in offshore locations such as Costa Rica or Gibraltar. The Wall Street firms that are doing the investing say that they view these online gambling as solid investment opportunities.

The apparent difficulty that is a part of any attempt to police cross-border activity in the age of the Internet with the accessibility of electronic commerce and a global economy going on at the same time, creates economic partners that cross national boundaries. The expanding participation on the part of American investors in the online gaming industry, itself points out the difficulty involved in policing.

Research are no new legal questions attached this issue, as in fact many experts have long been in disagreement over whether it is legal for an American company to do business with such companies,  businesses whose activities would be considered illegal if they were operating on U.S. shore.  There is a difference however, with Internet gambling and that is that the money wagering is performed in one’s home while residing in the U.S. and the Department of Justice has very clearly explained operators of online casinos are in valuation of the law.

Jaclyn Lesch, a Justice Department spokesperson, has said that her agency views online gambling as being illegal but she did not comment on the hypothetical liability of a company or individual involved in such activities.

Analysts of the Internet gambling industry as well as company executives have indicated the interests of the investment houses, in addition to the large sums of money coming from the players, as being ample proof that in fact federal policy is being ignored. 

Wall Street investment houses, while being aware of the current muddled legal status of online gambling, are saying that the risk attached to investing in online gambling firms is worth it in view of the tremendous profits that may be acquired from such investments.

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