DEVILFISH TO GO PUBLIC

8 February 2008

It's been awhile since an online poker outfit listed....


Land and online poker pro Dave “Devilfish” Ulliott is taking a bold step into the public company arena, planning a GBP 3.2 million listing on Plus Markets in London, reports The Times.

It's a refreshing change to see an online gambling company going after a listing - since the bans on financial transactions with online gambling companies in the USA imposed 15 months ago there has been little appetite for the genre.

Ulliott's company operates the Devilfishpoker.com site, chaired by the biotech entrepreneur Kevin Leech. It has hired Hichens, Harrison & Co as corporate adviser. The web site has more than 6 000 mainly UK registered users, claiming that 700 of these play real-money games. American players are forbidden entry in what is probably a wise precaution against business and legal complications.

The Devilfish plan is to raise around GBP 1 million from the float and will have a market value of GBP 3.2 million. Although Ulliott himself does not sit on the company’s board, he is its largest shareholder with a 27.8 percent stake. Leech is the next biggest shareholder. Paul Barnes, a management consultant who has a decade of experience in the online gambling space that includes work with Access Gaming in Ireland, is the company’s chief executive.

Online Casino News courtesy of InfoPowa