Sparks

What is Sparks?

Merkur Spielbanken Beteiligungs GmbH, a subsidiary of Merkur AG has reached an agreement to acquire a controlling interest in Société Française de Casinos (SFC).

The development marks a significant move by Merkur to expand its footprint within the French regulated gambling market.

On 27 August, Merkur signed a put option agreement with GPG Groupe Philippe Ginestet and DOFA, enabling the purchase of Casigrangi.

What is Sparks?

Another report, commisisoned by Euromat, estimates that Europe’s black market has sustained a compound annual growth rate of 18% between 2019 and 2026, and will be worth up to €13 billion by the end of the year.

For enforcement authorities, however, the challenge is not simply estimating its size. It is keeping track of an ecosystem that can continually change domains, infrastructure and acquisition channels. That is where Madsen sees Trace2Trace fitting in.

One of its investigations concerns a specific globally renowned brand. Madsen says an initial scan identified around 1,600 domains, followed by another roughly 4,500 associated with this operator. That puts the number identified so far at around 6,000, although he believes the actual figure is considerably higher. “I think what we’ve found so far is only a small part of the overall picture,” he says. “I’m almost certain the real number is at least twice as high.”

About Sparks

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