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  • Founded Date April 16, 1978
  • Sectors Restaurant / Food Services
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Company Description

Betting Battles: Islamic Police Raids Escalate as Innovation Startup Challenges Nigeria’s Gaming Giants

Meet CEOs/MDs of companies behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports betting market.

Gambling has progressed considerably in Nigeria from standard forms like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a successful sports betting industry. Historically tied to European football leagues, swimming pool staking was a typical sight at motor parks and kiosks, where enthusiasts would wager as little as N50-N200 on matches.

Slowly, with increased internet access came virtual wagering, which parallels worldwide trends. The sports betting market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and is forecasted to nearly double to $182.02 billion by 2030.

Regardless of financial difficulties such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting sector sports betting has actually flourished, drawing in millions, specifically amongst the vibrant group facing high joblessness rates.

Reports indicate that approximately 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively participate in sports betting, driving an industry that generates an approximated annual income of N730 billion. The federal government has not gone undetected by this growth, which is considering regulative steps like excise responsibilities and VAT boosts to manage the sector.

The National Lottery Act of 2005 recognized regulative bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to guarantee fair operations regardless of challenges in enforcement. Concerns such as inadequate age confirmation and marketing rule breaches reveal market regulative spaces.

Regardless of these challenges, sports betting wagering business continue to flourish through effective business designs and aggressive marketing methods, leveraging the developer influencer market.

These efforts have actually contributed to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion gambling sector, sports betting with CEOs playing important roles in expanding audience reach and driving market development. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting wagering business who have actually considerably contributed to Nigeria’s $2 billion gaming empire through their extensive audience reach.

Constable Olaniyan – CEO Surebet247

Constable Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book company he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His varied profession spans different roles in the video gaming and entertainment industry, consisting of operating at among the United Kingdom’s biggest video gaming centres, The Palace Bingo Club, sports betting where he acted as the Lead Engineer in a Bingo and Bowling Club.

Olaniyan holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Ilorin and a Master’s in Geographical Information Systems from the University of Glamorgan, Wales. Surebet247, founded in August 2011, sports betting has become a leading e-commerce business in the sports betting and gaming sector, operating through online, mobile, and retail channels. The business was integrated in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and sports betting has actually since expanded its existence, attaining over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet

Sam Sadi has over 25 years of experience in wagering brand names and sports betting media. In 2019, he ended up being the CEO of LiveScore Group, a totally integrated ecosystem that integrates appropriate sports betting material, engaging functions, and a world-class sportsbook.

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Since taking the helm just before the pandemic, Sam has actually driven substantial development for LiveScore Group. The company’s employee headcount has increased by 29%, and annual revenue has actually surged from around ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.

Sam’s leadership and strategic vision have propelled LiveScore Group’s success and assisted shape the industry’s direction. LiveScoreBet has actually achieved major user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Anthony Werkman – CEO of Betway Group

Anthony Werkman was designated CEO of Betway in November 2017, having previously functioned as the company’s Marketing and sports betting Operations Director given that 2015. He joined Betway in 2013 and has actually been in the online gaming market given that 2000, sports betting holding various effective roles, consisting of General Manager of an information analytics group and Director sports betting of a digital marketing company.

Under Werkman’s leadership, Betway has actually continued to grow its market presence and boost its offerings. The business’s app has actually gathered significant user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Damilare Alabi, Co-Founder, Managing Director NairaBET

Damilare Alabi has actually identified herself as a senior executive with a performance history of changing start-ups into institutionalized organizations. Her competence covers the video gaming, real estate, and credit lending markets, where he has actually established himself as a strategic and functional leader.

Damilare has actually been instrumental in NairaBET’s success for over 14 years. Because June 2019, she has worked as Managing Director and has actually overseen the company’s development and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.

Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, critical in the business’s functional methods and market growth.

She established DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit organization empowering women-owned businesses. DDWIN supplies frHer academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, finished in 2005.

Akin Alabi, the founder of NairaBET.com, Nigeria’s pioneering sports betting bookmaking company, established business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the very first sports betting platform in Nigeria, it was the very first to introduce a completely practical site, setting a benchmark in the industry.

Femi Babalola- General Manager of 1Xbet Nigeria Limited

Femi Babalola is the Managing Director sports betting of 1XBET Nigeria Limited, a franchise of the international sports betting business based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, has developed itself as one of the largest bookmakers in Europe and the world. The company runs in more than 50 nations, sports betting consisting of Nigeria, where it is fully licensed.

Under Babalola’s management, 1XBET Nigeria has actually broadened its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting market, using a wide range of sports betting options and an easy to use platform. The 1XBET app has over 500,000 downloads on the Play Store.

Gossy Ukanwoke – CEO of Betking Nigeria

Gossy Ukanwoke is the CEO of BetKing, Managing Director of KingMakers, and Chairman of Vend Capital. In addition to leading these endeavors, Ukanwoke has actually worked together with African socio-economic institutions and sports betting governments to design developmental policies targeted at empowering young people. In 2015, sports betting Ernst & & Young honoured him as the Winner of the Accelerating Category– World Entrepreneur of the Year.

BetKing, established and introduced in Nigeria on February 22, 2018, by Byron Petzer and Adekunle Adeniji, runs under the trademark name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting wagering and home entertainment company has quickly grown its existence in Nigeria, with outlets in major cities and over 500,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

In 2020, BetKing participated in a collaboration with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, developing over 100,000 jobs, the variety of which is increasing annually. In the exact same year, bought a 20% stake in BetKing, sports betting which was increased to 49% in 2021.

Denise Coates – CEO Bet 365

Denise Coates is a British billionaire businesswoman, sports betting the creator, majority investor, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online gaming business she developed in 2000. Bet365.com was released in 2001 as an online sports betting website and has since become one of the world’s largest online gaming business.

By 2016, Bet365 generated $2 billion in incomes and assisted in $45 billion in annual bets. The business also holds a bulk stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has actually amassed substantial user engagement, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

Ayo Ojuroye – CEO/Cofounder Bet9ja

Ayo Ojuroye is the CEO and co-founder of Bet9ja, a leading sports betting wagering company in Nigeria, established along with business person Kunle Soname, who likewise owns Portuguese club CD Feirense and Nigerian club Remo Stars.

Ojuroye is likewise the Chairman of Mango Asset Management, an independent Nigerian property management business that creates financial investment returns and provides unique investment insights and services to both specific and sports betting institutional customers.

Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, Bet9ja has actually quickly grown in appeal, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s management, Bet9ja has become a considerable gamer in the Nigerian sports betting industry.

Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet

Fikayo Ogunfuye is an experienced expert in the sports betting industry. He has actually been functioning as the Country Director sports betting for 22BET in Nigeria since June 2021. In this function, he has contributed to the company’s development through partnerships, company strategy, sports betting and new business advancement.

Fikayo’s experience consists of roles such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he handled product advancement and consumer experience, and sports betting Country Manager at 22BET, focusing on marketing technique and spending plan management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and held numerous digital marketing roles at Laclic Services and sports betting Betty Bingo.

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His profession began at Jumia Group, where he worked in SEO, CRM, sports betting and content management. Fikayo likewise acted as a Human Resource Officer at SIFAX Group.

He holds a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) in Management and Accounting from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and a Master of Science (MS) in Business Administration, Management, and Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.

22Bet is an online sports betting platform that offers sports betting, sports betting gambling establishment video games, and live dealership games. It was introduced in 2017 and is owned and run by Marikit Holdings Ltd, a business signed up in Cyprus and a subsidiary of Orakum N.V.. They are likewise the owners of Betwinner and a chain of casinos worldwide.

Sudeep Ramnani– CEO Sportybet Group

Sudeep Ramnani is the Founder and CEO of SportyBet, a company he developed in 2013.

SportyBet is a worldwide sports betting wagering and sports betting real-money gaming operator known for providing an omni-channel home entertainment experience in regulated emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s management, SportyBet has actually become a substantial gamer in the industry, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

In addition to his role at SportyBet, Sudeep is an active financier in fintech and mobile payments and a strong supporter for the growing African internet community. His financial investments show his commitment to cultivating development and advancement within the region.

On April 30, 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, taking part in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.

The firm is set to disrupt the sports wagering market.

Sunbet Sporting International Limited has stated it is focused on changing how countless Africans engage with sports betting. In a market worth over $1.5 billion annual, with double-digit growth forecast in the coming years, according to reports from the African Sports Betting Association and PwC, the company intends to utilize innovative technology and sports betting a dedication to accountable gambling to change the sector.

Backed by the financial power of 4 popular African billionaires, Sunbet, which will introduce in the first quarter of 2025, sports betting intends to be the continent’s largest and most innovative sports betting wagering platform.

At a press briefing, the business’s spokesperson, Akin Babatunde, said that the rise in Internet penetration, mobile use, and the continent’s deep enthusiasm for sports betting, sports betting specifically football, has actually set the stage for Sunbet’s ambitious entry. He added that the company’s robust sponsorship and professional group will allow it to scale and dominate the marketplace quickly.

Islamic police raid betting stores in northern Nigeria

Islamic police in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have begun shutting down sports betting wagering shops, which they say are operating unlawfully.

“As you know, wagering is prohibited in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, called the Hisbah, informed the BBC.

Problems from neighborhood leaders and moms and dads triggered the crackdown, worried about the growing number of sports betting addicts, he stated.

On the first day of raids, 30 stores were closed in one residential area alone, sports betting and their owners were sent home with a warning, the Sharia officer stated.

But Mr Aminudeen warned that now that the public understood that the Hisbah was clamping down on sports betting, those flouting the guidelines would be jailed.

Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a bulk Muslim population and operates the Islamic legal system – Sharia – alongside nonreligious law.

Bookmakers and bars tend to be allowed to operate in Kano’s Christian areas, though they too can deal with action if the Hisbah thinks Muslims are frequenting them.

Nevertheless, sports betting the present crackdown is concentrated on Muslim areas of Kano, a sprawling city and the economic hub of northern Nigeria.

sports betting wagering shops can be found all over the city. The majority of have tv screens, and consumers watch the outcome of worldwide football matches or horse races on which they have staked money.

Mr Aminudeen stated such bookmakers had actually had the ability to operate under the radar as they had actually opened under false pretences.

“They do not have licences to operate as they were allowed to run video games centres, which they later on converted to sports betting stores,” he said.

The sports betting industry has actually broadened drastically throughout West Africa recently. The area is roughly divided in between a generally Muslim north and a predominantly Christian south.

Lots of people go to bookies to delight in the friendship of other bettors, though mobile apps are also popular for wagering on the outcome of occasions and teams.

Nigeria’s debilitating economic crisis has likewise implied individuals want to run the risk of a small amount in the hope of winning huge.

However this had actually caused extensive dependency, and parents were even grumbling that children were dropping out of school to gamble, Mr Aminudeen said.

“These financial problems we are facing in Nigeria is God informing us to change our ways by stopping sins,” he said.

The raids on Tuesday focused on Munjibir, considered a resort area in the northeast of the city– visitors flock there at weekends.

“I am encouraging those running those wagering shops to either shut down or we’ll detain them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen said.

It is unclear what penalty they would face – often, such infringements carry a fine.

Sharia was presented in Kano in 2000 – as it remained in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, sports betting and the usage of alcohol were banned.

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