A who’s who of investors pumped $36 million into Sporttrade to help the company launch its first legal U.S. sports betting exchange.
In addition to Jump Capital, investors include Jim Murren, former CEO of MGM Resorts International, Tom Wittman, former CEO of the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, and a handful of other companies.
Sporttrade hopes to open in the second half of the year in New Jersey, pending regulatory approval. New funding will serve to acquire customers, expand into additional states and hiring. Sporttrade CEO Alex Kane told LSR the company wanted to apply principles from the financial world to sports betting beginning with an app non-bettors can follow.
“People without a financial background can open Robinhood and understand how to invest in stocks,” Kane said. “Why should sports betting be any different?”
To make betting more user-friendly, Sporttrade will use percentages rather than odds. As an example, Kane cited a trader who might buy the Jets pre-game at 20, then close out at 40 after they take a 10-0 lead.
“The U.S. bettor will finally have a transparent open market of sports betting wagers to trade, and we couldn’t be more excited to be a partner,” Jump Capital partner Yelena Shkolnik said.
