These things happen from time to time—gaming authorities flag someone high up in a company seeking a license, and to show good faith effort to reduce runaway crime, that someone has to do some kind of penance as a condition for a license.
This is what happened to BetMGM July 21 when the Louisiana Gaming Control Board attached certain conditions to its license as a result of a federal investigation into billionaire investor Barry Diller, chair of IAC, a company which owns 7 percent of BetMGM stock.
BetMGM Louisiana has operated its mobile app since January on a temporary permit which expired July 30. The renewal now covers the next five years.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice have launched an investigation of Diller and his son-in-law, Alexander von Furstenberg, regarding a $60 million profit from the acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. The purchase came days before Microsoft Corp. agreed to buy the video game maker. Diller has denied wrongdoing.
Diller has to turn in a written report every six months with details on the status of the fed investigation. The reports are to be submitted to the Control Board, the Louisiana State Police and the state attorney general.
Control Board Chairman Ronnie Johns told Gambling.com the state has no beef with BetMGM, which operates under a license through Sam’s Town Hotel and Casino.
Sam’s Town, a riverboat casino in Shreveport, is owned by Nevada-based Boyd Gaming. The BetMGM mobile app is available to bettors statewide, except in the nine parishes that rejected sports betting in the 2020 election.
The Control Board chairman noted that Diller has not been charged with a crime.
“We don’t want to penalize BetMGM just for an investigation,” Johns told Gambling.com.
If Diller is found unsuitable, he would have to unload his 7 percent interest in BetMGM, Johns said. If not, the company would have to turn in its license.
