David Baazov of Amaya Gaming Group, Inc. has just made a risky move with his $4.9 million acquisition of online gambling sites PokerStars and Full Tilt. The 33-year-old Canadian has been supplying his software and technology to the online gambling industry for years. And now he wants a bigger slice of the pie.
Currently only 3 states in the US have legalized online gambling, but several more are giving it serious consideration. Although the vast earnings potential is there, Baazov has taken a huge risk by acquiring such significant debt.
While he has already invested in two well-established brands, which have a combined total of over 86 million registered users, Baazov has just added much more to his plate. But Baazov has some innovative ideas about how to incorporate online gambling, mobile apps, social media, social gambling, and brick and mortar casinos in mutually beneficial partnerships. And they may serve him well.
One of the many challenges that Baazov faces is that even as online gambling is legalized in new states within the US, many financial institutions and credit card companies (such as American Express) refuse to process online gambling transactions even if they are willing to process live gambling transactions.
It will take at least a few years to see if the risk was worth the gains, but if legalize online gambling continues to grow, this calculated risk could be well worth the wait.
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