Neteller Begins US Repayments -- Neteller announced this morning that it would, today, begin repaying its U.S. customers. Click here to view the full story.
Solid Q2 for FUN -- FUN Technologies has released second-quarter results, which show a 68 percent jump in revenue to $16.9 million, compared to Q2 2006. The company reported a post-tax loss of $7.6 million, down from a $8.8 million post-tax loss during Q2 2006 and up form a $5.2 million loss during Q1 2007. "FUN Technologies had a record quarter, mainly due to consolidation in the games segment that continued to produce extremely favorable results and the addition of Major League Baseball-related fantasy sports operating results," said FUN chief executive Lorne Abony.
All's Well So Far -- In a note to the London Stock Exchange this morning, 32Red said that first-half trading was in line with managerial expectations and that it is confident regarding its full-year prospects. The company said that the relocation of its Betdirect business to Gibraltar (from Liverpool) has been slower than expected but added that growth for the online sports book has been encouraging.
Tatts, Betfair Ink Sponsorship Deal -- Tattersalls has agreed to a sponsorship deal with Betfair, which sees Betfair sponsor the Tattersalls October yearling sale, with its publishing arm, Timeform, to sponsor the Tattersalls Millions race series. The series, which comprises three new races at Newmarket spanning 2008 and 2009, will offer a combined minimum purse of approximately $4.5 million--rendering it the most valuable race series in the world. "This unique partnership allows us to elevate the relationship beyond simply the naming of races, and we believe that our association with one of British racing's most respected brands will have international appeal to a select clientele," said Betfair racing director Stephen Burn.
Potential Trouble for Macau -- The Financial Times reports that the number of Chinese mainland visitors to Macau fell by 16.5 percent last month, after the neighboring Guangdong province introduced visa restrictions in May. The fall in visitors, coupled with a 20 percent drop in June gambling revenue from record numbers in May, "raises concern that the world's largest gaming market is vulnerable to further tightening measures from China," the paper said. "During the month of June it begins to become noticeable the effects of those restrictions," Manuel Joaquim das Neves, the head of Macau's gaming regulatory body, told the FT.
Glass Half Full -- The Independent editorializes that there are reasons for looking toward Neteller's future with optimism. " . . . it still has $75 million in cash, and while the drop in revenue from the U.S. closure looks horrid, the company ought to at least break even this year," the paper said. "Shrewd investors have already cottoned on and the shares, now out of suspension, rallied to 79p from 73.75 at the end of last week."
Stock Watch -- On the LSE, Neteller was down 11p to 68, PartyGaming was down 0.25p to 27.75 and 888 was down 3.50p to 112.