Paddy Power bets on gaming stateside

Betting services giant Paddy Power hopes to make meaningful progress on plans to expand its online gaming business into the US by the end of the year.

Speaking yesterday, on the back of a strong set of first-half figures — which included a 22% rise in net revenue, a 12% annualised boost to pre-tax profits and record earnings per share growth — chief executive Patrick Kennedy said he hoped to see the issue more clarity in the next two-to-three months.

The Dublin-based company has applied for licences in Nevada and New Jersey, the latter of which is set to become the largest US State to legalise online poker and casino gaming in November.