Entain Files Legal Claim for Damages against Former BetCity Owners

Last year in January, the leading betting and gaming giant, Entain, finalized the acquisition of Betent, trading as BetCity, a leading online gambling and sports betting operator in the Netherlands, from Sports Entertainment Media (SEM). The acquisition with a price tag of a whopping $484.2 million was initially announced in June 2022 but has taken some half year to be completed.

Now, Entain filed a legal claim against BetCity’s former owner, SEM, members of the Singels family as well as former executives of the Dutch brand, a document released by CasinoNieuws reveals. The company alleged the defendants failed to disclose information regarding two investigations for non-compliance into BetCity by the country’s gambling regulator, the KSA.

The described incidents date back to 2022 with Entain alleging BetCity executives, who were aware of the breaches, did not disclose them in official documents. One of KSA’s probes relates to breaches of the brand related to emailing promotional offers to young adults. Subsequently, a fine of €400,000 ($433,000) was imposed against the operator for this breach.

On the other hand, the second probe was related to anti-money laundering and counter terrorism financing violations. The KSA’s investigation into those deficiencies was launched in May 2022 and BetCity was subsequently fined €3 million ($3.2 million).

The Company Claims Damages for Breach of Warranty

Earlier this month, CasinoNiews confirmed that Entain filed a lawsuit against the former owners of BetCity. Yet, at the time, information was scarce, and it wasn’t clear what the purpose of the lawsuit was. Now, the newly released document sheds more light on the essence of the lawsuit.

“By these proceedings the Claimant claims damages for breach of warranty and breach of covenant in relation to its purchase of Betent from SEM,“

reads the legal claim filed by Entain

Back in November 2022, Entain discovered that BetCity was under investigation by the Dutch gambling regulator. In light of this, the company agreed that SEM would cover any fines, if such were applicable, due to the aforementioned probes of the KSA. Additionally, Entain reserved the right to file further claims against BetCity’s former owners due to the breach of warranty.

The described discrepancies, according to Entain, should have impacted the price of the aforementioned acquisition. This is why the company is pursuing monetary compensation. Yet, specific details regarding its damage claim are yet to be released.