SportingBets Midnight Express

Internet gambling group, SportingBet, is standing its ground regarding its Turkish operations despite the recent arrest of two of its employees.

Held without charge
SportingBet's CEO, Andrew McIver, remains clueless as to the reasons behind the arrests. The two junior employees, both Turkish, were jailed last week along with 30 others all associated with SportingBet's previous marketing partner, Maslin Properties. The group has yet to be charged.

Press reports
According to reports in the Turkish press, police are investigating allegations of organized crime, money laundering and tax evasion. It is unclear whether the arrests are linked to illegal online gambling activity.

Staying put
McIver has stated that his company will not be pulling out of Turkey, its third biggest market, despite the legal scandal.

Riding high
The sports betting firm is keen to prevent the Turkish affair overshadowing the release of its impressive third quarter results. It was announced on Tuesday that operating profits have soured from 3M to 7.3M GBP.

Within the law
The firm insists that their activity is entirely legal owing to the fact that they have no ‘physical operations' in Turkey. According to one city analyst, however, any sort of Turkish presence is potentially damaging to the firm's reputation and valuation.

On track
The odds betting outfit, however, remains un-phased. On track to meet its end of year forecast of 21M GBP, SportingBet looks set to ride out the Turkish storm.