Pro online gambling financial group opens US subsidiary
News on 10 Feb 2010
News on 10 Feb 2010
Three former senior executives from MasterCard are betting that lawmakers will soon regulate legalised Internet gambling in the United States, and have set up shop to facilitate wagers as a U.S.-subsidiary for a United Kingdom payments processor.
A staunch advocate of legalised online gambling in the USA, UC Group Ltd launched its US subsidiary SecureTrading, and released a statement assuring interested parties that it is poised to provide “safe financial transactions and required consumer protections” in the United States in anticipation of federal legislation.
The UC move comes in the wake of recent developments that have seen MasterCard and more recently Visa blocking the placement of financial transactions with online gambling sites despite delays in the implementation date for the UIGEA and an imminent push by Congressman Barney Frank to legalise online gambling.
SecureTrading’s chairman, Chris Thom, was chief risk officer at MasterCard, where he spent 11 years. The subsidiary’s chief operating officer, Ted Friedman, previously worked at MasterCard New York and Europay International in Belgium. And T.J. Sharkey, its head of customer sales and support, spent 17 years at MasterCard, recently as the group head of Global Merchants and Acquirers.
“Momentum for regulating Internet gambling in the U.S. has been building for some time,” said Thom. “As Congress prepares to take the final step, SecureTrading Inc.’s turnkey system is primed to enable our customers to go live the moment Internet gambling is regulated.”
SecureTrading Inc.’s services will enable licensed gambling operators quickly and efficiently to be in full compliance with Internet gambling regulation. Offerings include player registration, verification and validation to ensure that the player is not underage and is in a location where online gambling is legal. The company also provides financial payments processing, anti-money laundering and fraud tools, tax computation and collection, payment and reporting; and responsible gambling tools that will allow players to self-exclude from online gambling activity or elect online to seek help in real-time for problem gambling.
“Individually and collectively Chris, Ted and T.J. have extensive experience in the Card and Banking industry for providing Internet payment services across multiple market sectors,” said Kobus Paulsen, Chairman of UC Group Ltd. “They bring substantial value to SecureTrading Inc. and our customer base as we prepare for the passage and implementation of online gambling regulation in the U.S.”
