Law could derail online poker as float planned

THE world’s biggest online poker company, PartyGaming, said yesterday it expected that proposals for American legislation to ban credit card companies from dealing with online casinos would fail.

Leading US senators plan to attack online casinos by blocking banks and credit card companies from allowing US customers to use their accounts for online bets, weekend reports said.

The proposed law is being sponsored by a senator from the state of Arizona. Legislators will discuss the proposal after the summer recess.

“Kyl and a few others have tried every year for the past several years to take action against online gambling companies, and every year they’ve failed,” a spokesman for PartyGaming told Reuters yesterday.

If passed, the law would seriously hinder PartyGaming’s access to most of its online customers.

The online poker company aims to float this month in what is likely to be London’s biggest new listing since Friends Provident in 2001.

Analysts estimate the listing could value the company at up to $10 billion (€8.2bn), thrusting it into the FTSE 100 share index.

Online poker has surged in popularity as it pulls in a wider audience than traditional casino gambling - often including women and younger players who may not have visited casinos. Better broadband access has also helped the boom.