As reported by: The Evening Standard
The ability of punters to lose money at the click of a mouse is proving good business for Sportingbet. The online bookie and casino operator had its best-ever quarter to the end of December and now, finally unencumbered by its recent history of bear raiders of the stock and problems with its US acquisition, is promising annual growth of 20%.

The group said today it has 1.1m customers (100,000 in the UK) and, with a profit margin of around 9%, had pre-tax earnings of £9m in its third quarter.

After a shocking two weeks in September when almost every major soccer and American football match went with the favourite, nine-month profits at £3.3m, are nearly double the same period in 2002. That lifted the shares 2p to a 15-month high 54 1/2p.

Chief executive Nigel Payne says growth potential is exponential. 'We have less than 1% of the global betting market and online betting even now only represents 5% of the total market.

'Out of all the countries in the world, there are only five which have retail betting shops. You have to ask where all these other people are going to have a bet.'