The Nevada Gaming Control Board on Wednesday recommended approval of licenses for a Malta-based sportsbook company that will support Nevada’s Bally’s Corp. properties on a business-to-business basis.
In unanimous votes, board members supported Kambi Group PLC after a nearly two-hour hearing.
Final license approval will be processed by the Nevada Gaming Commission on January 30.
If licensed, Kambi would provide software and set up and maintain the sports betting platform for its regulated customers. It has no immediate plans for business-to-consumer operations.
Kambi’s top client in the state is Bally’s, which operates a casino at Lake Tahoe. A company representative said there are no immediate plans for future Bally’s developments in Las Vegas. The company has discussed developing a resort at the former Tropicana site in conjunction with the construction of a Major League Baseball stadium for the Athletics at the southeast corner of Tropicana Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard South.
“We see Nevada as a great business opportunity,” Erik Logdberg, CEO of Kambi, told the board.
Founded in 2010, the company serves more than 40 operators in more than 50 jurisdictions. As a global sports betting company, executives said it supports businesses that mostly take bets on soccer and tennis matches, basketball and e-sports. They said their US stores, mostly in New Jersey and Pennsylvania markets, benefit from betting on American football. Kambi has approximately 50 employees in the United States. The company processes more than 1 billion bets every year.
Most of the company’s management team are based in Sweden.
During the hearing, board members interviewed several of the company’s key executives and found all to be suitable for licensing. The board also focused on Kambi’s compliance program overseen by top executives and managers.
Executives also explained Kambi’s business model, which provides tools necessary for operators to set lines and assess risk. The company manages all customer funds, settles bets and pays winners, resolves questions and pays tax on earnings on behalf of its corporate customers.
Other news
In other business, the board on Wednesday recommended the approval of key executives to Frank Cassella, senior vice president of finance for HR Las Vegas LLC, which will operate Hard Rock Las Vegas on the Strip.
Cassella gave board members a status report on the transition of The Mirage to the Hard Rock.
Cassella said work on the project continues to be in a demolition phase with the famous Mirage Volcano already torn out.
“If you drive by, you can see that most of the front drive is the construction zone,” Cassella said. “Some of the pylons have gone up for the new guitar tower, which will be over 700 feet tall with 650 suites. There will be a complete redesign of the 3,000-room Mirage Tower, a complete redesign of the casino, a redesign of the pool , and there will be an additional pool for the guitar tower,” he said.
“Currently, my responsibilities include a lot of budgeting and forecasting for the pre-opening efforts, developing staffing compendiums, purchasing compendiums and task compendiums for the opening. And when we open in 2027, my responsibilities will be for all financial operations, similar to what they were for The Mirage.”
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