MaximBet announced Wednesday that it had closed its sports betting operations in the US, effectively ending its dream of becoming a fashionable online sports betting and casino operator.
The brand — which launched in Indiana less than seven weeks ago — said it was no longer accepting deposits or wagers. Customers were told they could withdraw any balances until December 15, after which any remaining balances would be refunded via a mailed check.
Open wagers will settle, per MaximBet’s house rules, until December 15. At that point, they will be cashed out at current fair value market pricing, with any player balances returned by check.
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On Twitter, MaximBet said it was in consultations with state regulators as it works to “wind down operations and help customers withdraw their funds and close accounts.
Report: Marketing Spend Outpaced Revenue
:Our ability as an early-stage company to compete in a market where operating costs far exceed revenue, even among the top operators, is not sustainable.
According to a report by Sportico, MaximBet cited “macro-economic conditions” as the reason for shutting down its operations.
“Our ability as an early stage company to compete in a market where operating costs far exceed revenue, even among the top operators, is not sustainable,” MaximBet told the media outlet.
Sportico reported that an investor slide deck showed the company spent $3.7 million on marketing in Colorado during MaximBet’s first six months in operation in the state. That figure was more than double its gross gaming revenue of $1.8 million.
MaximBet’s demise follows that of Fubo Sportsbook, which ceased operations in October. TwinSpires also shuttered its sports betting operations this year.
MaximBet Was Live in Colorado and Indiana
MaximBet was a joint venture between Carousel Group and Maxim. The former is a holding company based in Malta that invests and manages B2C operations in the online gaming industry, while the latter is a multimedia company that publishes Maxim magazine.
When MaximBet was first announced in April 2021, Carousel and Maxim described it as a “lifestyle sports betting brand.”
A MaximBet-branded online sportsbook debuted in Colorado in September 2021, but the launch was technically just a rebrand of SportsBetting.com, which Carousel had launched precisely one year earlier. MaximBet was tethered to the land-based license of Johnny Nolon’s Casino.
Shortly after the Colorado launch, MaximBet said it had secured market access to provide online casino gaming in Pennsylvania through a partnership with Caesars. The operator also said it had market access to provide sports betting in Ohio but did not disclose a partnership there.
It also had access to Arizona through the White Mountain Apache Tribe but did not have a gaming license from the state regulator.
MaximBet launched online sports betting in Indiana on September 30 through a partnership with Harrah’s Hoosier Park, a racino owned and operated by Caesars.
At the time of the launch in Indiana, MaximBet said it planned to launch sports betting in five jurisdictions — Iowa, New Jersey, Ohio, Louisiana, and Ontario. It also said it was planning to offer online casino gaming in New Jersey, Ontario, and Pennsylvania.
Kambi and White Hat Gaming developed the operator’s sports betting platform. It had also recently hired pop culture icon Nicki Minaj and Charlie Blackmon, an outfielder with MLB’s Colorado Rockies, as brand ambassadors.
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