PlayUp pauses $10m capital raise after US business hit by regulator
PlayUp, the Australian fantasy sports betting outfit, has paused its $10 million capital raise until it can sell its business in the United States.
The decision to pause the capital raise comes after New Jersey’s gambling regulator, the Division of Gaming Enforcement, revoked PlayUp’s license to provide betting services in the state.
PlayUp chief executive Daniel Simic.
PlayUp failed to provide information surrounding employee taxes, bank statements and payroll details, prompting the regulator to act. The authority’s move means PlayUp cannot accept bets or deposits from customers, but it is obligated to pay out pending wagers.
The company’s US operations have spiralled in the last month after it laid off staff, failed to pay them on time in June while seeking fresh capital, as revealed by The Australian Financial Review, and as it considered a sale of the division to an unidentified North American business.
PlayUp chief executive Daniel Simic said the company’s US staff and “several employees” in global positions were let go, around the time it received the request from the New Jersey regulator. “We have now successfully submitted the requested information,” Mr Simic said on Monday.
PlayUp will also go offline in Colorado, the only other US state it operates in.
PlayUp attempted to sell its US operations for $US450 million ($668 million) to FTX, but the deal fell apart in late 2021. The cryptocurrency exchange, run by Sam Bankman-Fried, later collapsed. PlayUp’s proposed merger with a special purpose acquisition vehicle also dissolved in January.
“Despite the SPAC’s repeated requests for the company financial statements, the company has failed to deliver the company financial statements and has provided no indication of
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