Will bet365 exit Gibraltar following Brexit?

The Sunday Times of Malta reported over the weekend that major online gambling group Bet365 may relocate its operations to Malta, leaving Gibraltar when the Brexit issue has been finalised. Such a move would involve some 1,000 employees, the newspaper reports.

Quoting unnamed sources, the Sunday Times of Malta revealed that a sale agreement valued at Euro 70 million has been signed to allow Bet365 to acquire a “large part of a new property in the Tigne’, Sliema.”

The relocation of such a large group would have a significant economic impact for the industry and for Malta, observers interviewed by the newspaper said..

“It is not every day that 1,000 well-paid employees are relocated to Malta. Apart from the fact that we are talking about the largest sports betting company in the world – with some 23 million customers – a thousand individuals and their families looking for a place to stay for quite some time on a small island, will mean significant business,” said one of them.

The newspaper reports that the Malta property market is already reacting to the news of a possible Bet365 move, with rents rising. Some local observers have voiced concerns over possible congestion and overcrowding in the Tigné area.

The operating company for Bet365, Hillside (New Media Malta) plc registered three companies in Malta back in 2014, and acquired a remote gaming licence from the Malta Gaming Authority the following year, saying it was motivated by “regulatory developments in various operating territories”.

Hillside also registered a new property company in Malta last year, increasing its paid share capital to Euro 12.5 million to invest in the acquisition of the property in Sliema. Last month the company finalised its plans to transfer part of its business to Malta and registered another company, Hillside (Shared Services Malta) Ltd.

Bet365 is headquartered in Stoke-on-Trent, England and employs around 3,500 people globally.