easyGroup, the conglomerate that counts budget airline easyJet among its businesses, has announced the launch of a new online sports betting brand, easyBet.
Developed in partnership with betting exchange Matchbook, the easyBet.net website is now live and accepting bets on a variety of sports. Customers can access numerous markets and bet types via a betting exchange model.
easyBet.net is available in the UK, but it is unclear where precisely the brand will operate. It is licensed by both the Great Britain Gambling Commission and the Alderney Gambling Control Commission.
The launch follows easyGroup’s history of pursuing several brand infringement cases associated with the ‘easy’ brand, including actions against websites easyBet.com and South Africa-facing easyBet.co.za.
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With the introduction of its official brand, easyGroup asserts that it assures customers of its legitimacy as a member of the ‘easy’ family.
This venture marks the first instance of an ‘easy’ brand entering the sports betting industry. However, easyGroup pointed out that it is not the first major UK consumer brand to establish its own betting brand, citing Virgin and Sky as examples. Matchbook will operate the brand, paying a licensing fee to easyGroup.
Commenting on the launch, easyGroup founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou stated it is a “natural” move for the conglomerate.
“We are delighted to welcome easyBet.net to the ‘easy’ family of brands,” Haji-Ioannou said. “It is a natural new market to complement our other large consumer brands in the UK and Ireland.
“easyBet offers peer-to-peer betting with the aim of giving customers fairer odds than traditional bookmakers. It allows you to bet on sports events. You can back what you think will win or lay what you think will lose. We believe this model offers fairer odds to the consumer.”
Matchbook CEO Malcolm Graham also praised the new venture. He commented: “The ‘easy’ brand is renowned for consistently supplying quality and value to its customers. easyBet.net offers its customers industry-leading odds across a wide range of sports and geographic markets, providing a top-tier user experience.
“We’re also thrilled we will be supporting Stelios’ philanthropic activities via the licence fees being paid to easyGroup.”
In announcing the launch, easyGroup highlighted Matchbook’s dedication to the new brand.
The official announcement indicated that Matchbook has formed an “industry-leading management team” to oversee its operations. It also mentioned that the company has implemented best-in-class compliance and regulation systems.
Matchbook previously faced scrutiny from the Gambling Commission in 2020 regarding its Triplebet brand, which is also mentioned on the new easyBet website among the licensed platforms.
The Commission temporarily suspended Triplebet’s licence in February 2020 after a two-year review of the operation, citing serious deficiencies in anti-money laundering measures, due diligence checks on syndicates, and social responsibility protections. The business was also instructed to pay a fine of £740,000 (€888,152/$959,221).
Following the review, Triplebet engaged the services of performance improvement consultancy Alvarez and Marsal to enhance its systems, resulting in improvements across the business.
Consequently, Matchbook had its licence reinstated in August 2020. easyGroup easyBet