Sporttrade, a US-based sports betting exchange startup, is pairing with Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc.to launch the first regulated sports betting exchange in the United States market. It’s a partnership that’s slated to last for several years and involves a healthy wager that Americans will embrace sports betting markets.
The project is set to launch in the New Jersey market at an as-yet-to-be-disclosed date, as the operation has yet to receive the go-ahead from New Jersey sports betting regulators. Sports betting exchanges are legal in the United States, but there are plenty of reasons why there aren’t any currently in operation. For starters, there’s a pretty steep learning curve when it comes to sports betting exchanges versus traditional sportsbooks. Most Americans are entirely unfamiliar with the concept. (But they were also unfamiliar with daily fantasy sports and that seems to have worked out all right.)
There’s also a concern that there may not be enough liquidity in the New Jersey market to keep the operation afloat. Under current US law, liquidity pools are bound by state lines, so customers could only come from the state where the operation is licensed.
In a statement to the press, Alexander Kane, Founder and CEO of Sporttrade, touted the deal saying, “We are thrilled to partner with Twin River as we prepare to introduce a truly differentiated product to the New Jersey market. By applying capital markets technology and market structure to the US sports betting ecosystem, we are creating something revolutionary. Sporttrade will establish a first-of-its-kind sports betting venue that will be fair, liquid, and transparent, and we look forward to offering customers innovative betting products at significantly lower costs than traditional sportsbooks.”
On the Twin River side of the deal, George Papanier, President and CEO of Twin River Worldwide Holdings was similarly enthusiastic saying, “Sporttrade will be a great addition to our list of unique partnerships we are building in the Atlantic City market. They will bring a new, exciting online product offering for our guests and we look forward to having them join our Atlantic City team.”
Now all they have to do is convince the American betting public to buy in on the idea.