Irish betting company to enter British market

ONLINE betting company SportsSpread plans to enter the lucrative British market and raise up to €3.5 million in new funding.

The company, which is backed by the former Irish soccer international Kevin Moran, has received approval from Britain's Financial Services Authority to begin trading.

"This has been a long stated aim of this group and the group will launch its product in the UK in early 2005 through a wholly-owned subsidiary Worldspreads Limited," the firm said in accounts just filed at the Companies Registration Office.