Former Billionaire Tells How He Lost All His Moscow Casinos In The Blink Of An Eye

1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (4 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
Loading...
Gambling Laws Money in Russia

Michael Boettcher, the owner of one of the erstwhile largest Russian gambling companies – Storm International, – told in his interview for Vedomosti newspaper how he lost all his gaming assets in a single day and suffered huge losses as a result of  closing down his business in Russia.

In 2008, at the time of the creation of special zones for gambling, and, in fact, ban on the gambling business in Moscow, Boettcher’s company managed five major Moscow casinos, and a network of bars and restaurants.

By the early 1990s, Boettcher came to Moscow as a gambling consultant and manager of the small four-table casino Elite. Here he founded his gaming company Storm International. Before Moscow, a businessman had already gained over 25 years of working experience in various fields, from taxi driver to croupier on cruise ships; and he also founded a consulting company and a croupier school, British Gaming Academy.

Former Billionaire Tells How He Lost All His Moscow Casinos In The Blink Of An EyeIn 2009, a change in Russian legislation led to a ban on gambling business almost all over Russia except for a number of the regions, where four special zones were created. After such a shocking stroke on the gambling business, Boettcher was forced to close all his casinos in Russia and fire 6,000 employees.

“How did it happen? How did I lose my business? I was a billionaire on paper, and the next day I no longer had a business,” he said.

From a number of possible reasons leading to the authorities’ fatal decision for the gambling business, the Briton highlighted the accessibility, wide abundance of slot halls and loss of control over their management.

According to Boettcher, he offered other market participants to close all slot halls. Also, the businessman expressed his willingness to abandon his slot clubs, thereby sacrificing half of his profits. But other owners of the largest casinos regarded his proposal as a desire “to wangle all the business.”

Boettcher did not see any logic in the law which essentially prohibits the gambling business. “There was indeed an urgent need for change, it was obvious. But there was no need to close all the casinos,” he added.

Delving into the details, an entrepreneur noted that he had visited all the gambling zones which had been allocated in Russia for casinos. “Business is struggling for survival there,” said Boettcher.

After the closure of his casinos in Moscow, Boettcher refused to continue doing business in Russia and opened casinos in neighboring Georgia, Belarus, Armenia and several other countries.

Boettcher described the current state of the market  as “highly competitive” and “with complex relations with partners.” In his opinion, the governments of different countries only tighten the business requirements, it has become difficult to work in all areas.

“Still, I’m excited, because the other day we had the opportunity to open a casino in one of the South-East Asian countries, but I wouldn’t like to talk about it yet,” the businessman said.

Today, Boettcher no longer intends to work in Russia as he sees a prospect for himself only in the countries of the Asian region.

Related Posts

Read more

Cryptocurrency Gambling Goes Mainstream

Since the very beginning of the cryptocurrency era (its exact launch date is still disputed, though), it was clear that crypto-money as such was set to conquer as many areas of use as possible. The rule is that when the theoretical benefits of using cryptocurrency for this or that practical purpose becomes apparent, then it […]

Read More

ICE London Nowadays

ICE means the “International Casinos Exhibition” and it has a long history. It is organized by Clarion Gaming, a subdivision of Clarion Events; the latter has been organizing, producing and delivering market-leading and innovative events since 1947. The gaming industry has significantly evolved to stay in line with the continually changing gaming landscape since the […]

Read More

The Strength of Your Hand vs. Your Position in Poker

Because the relative strength of the hand you’re playing is so dependent on your position, it is quite obvious that you should be playing the strongest hands possible when you choose to play from the worst possible positions on the poker table. How to Act While You’re in the Early Position at the Poker Table Let’s […]

Read More

Hacking Online Casinos: What Is It All About?

As online casinos handle a lot of money, casino operators do need to focus on security. Hacking techniques are improving all the time, keeping up-to-date with the latest cyber-security developments, and showing a capacity to penetrate even well-protected systems. However, hacking an online casino which is known for being a reputable and licensed venue is […]

Read More
YOU MAY LIKE IT