“Cassava Follows Fellow Internet Gambling Operators Going Public”

Last Wednesday, Cassava announced its plans to create a public company worth 1.26 billion dollars. News of the impending float came soon after a number of online gambling firms had already gone public; the largest of which, PartyGaming, has enjoyed phenomenal success since its IPO. Cassava’s announcement to either float on the London Stock Exchange or the London Alternative Investment Market was made public by Reuters and the Financial Times.

Gibraltar-based Cassava is the owner and operator of 888.com. Owned by two Israeli families – the Shaked’s and the Ben Yitkhak’s – the company has a lower valuation than other online gambling companies listed publicly. However 888.com is widely known as one of the world’s most popular internet gambling websites and Cassava’s decision to float its stock has been met with heightened anticipation from potential investors.

Enjoying the boom in the online gambling industry, related businesses are also preparing to list publicly to cash in on the success of companies like Cassava and PartyGaming. One of the world’s leading casino software companies Cryptologic has recently listed on the London Stock Exchange and in its first quarter posted a profit of five million dollars from a total revenue of twenty million dollars. Further public listings by casino software companies are expected as a result.

All of this may sound like good news for gambling operators and gambling fans alike, but industry analysts urge caution. The online gambling industry is illegal in the United States and further legislation in the future could seriously hamper efforts by online gambling firms to increase U.S. profits. Currently more than half of the revenue generated by the online gambling industry comes from the United States.

Concerns about the future of the industry however are almost non-existent in the United Kingdom. Rather than ban online gambling, the U.K. has legalized and regulated it, a move partly responsible for the industry’s strong growth and performance.