Punter calls for Gambling Commission probe into UK Tote’s Placepot pools
The player claims there may be a conflict of interest due to the amount of the operator’s own money in the pools.
UK.- A horse racing betting punter has called for the Gambling Commission to investigate the UK Tote Group’s Placepot pools amid claims of a possible conflict of interest. The player believes that the operator has become a majority participant in its own pools, holding up to 60 per cent of the liquidity.
Based on a detailed analysis of the pools’ liquidity over two years, the punter argues that the growth of the Tote’s own cash in the product changes “100 years of precedent of pools being player against player”. He also raised concerns over the “significant information advantage” of the UK Tote Group over customers and noted that the group’s “profit or loss is dependent upon, and inversely correlated with, their customers’ loss”.
It is clarified in the Tote’s terms and conditions that the group may participate in the Tote pools by placing bets on products. Indeed, the operator began seeding its own pools when the Covid-19 pandemic led to racing being held without audiences. It launched a Pool Guarantee Service (PGS) for single-leg pools to add early liquidity, but the player’s analysis finds that Tote has also bet in multi-leg pools like the Placepot. He claims that spikes of activity resemble high-frequency automated trading.
The UK Tote Group insists that bettors and distribution partners have said they want bigger and more predictable pools to make them more attractive and easier to market. The operator has guaranteed Placepots of £50,000 to £1m.
Last month, the UK Tote Group extended its long-term deal with Britbet Racing covering on-course pool betting at most racecourses in the association. The deal renews a £50m seven-year agreement that began in July 2018. The new agreement will run from November 2025 until at least the end of October 2030.
The delivery of on-course betting will continue to be controlled by each venue, while Tote branding will be used for the offering and Tote will provide all off-course services.
