Latest news with #Betr
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Morning Mail: nations ‘have duty to curb fossil fuels', Epstein files furore continues, inside Gaza's starvation crisis
Morning everyone. After years of campaigning by Pacific activists and the Vanuatu government, the world's top court has ruled that countries could be made to pay reparations if they fail to take action on the climate crisis. We have a full report, plus scientists warn that the ongoing marine heatwave will hit wildlife as badly as the black summer fires. In other news, house prices are up in all eight capital cities. We have a heartbreaking dispatch from the frontline of Gaza's starvation crisis, and the latest on the Epstein files furore in the US. Ocean 'superhighway' | A global study of deep sea creatures called brittle stars shows linked ecosystems on a 'superhighway' reaching from southern Australia to the north Atlantic. Big bet | The bookmaker Betr generated more than half of its gambling profits from just 20 customers in January, according to a rival company which is the target of a takeover by Betr. Algal augury | Scientists warn the wildlife impacts of a marine heatwave that has driven a catastrophic algal bloom off South Australia are likely to be equivalent to those from the black summer bushfires. Capital gains | Australia's eight state and territory capital cities have posted simultaneous house price rises for the first time in four years. Freedom stalled | The Centre for Public Integrity has accused the Albanese government of having a poorer record than the Morrison government for producing documents for public scrutiny. 'Gaza is starving' | Our reporter in Gaza, Malak A Tantesh, writes today about the desperate situation in the territory as skeletal children fill hospital wards amid a worsening starvation crisis. 'These cases haunt me, they never leave my mind,' says one paediatrician. The head of the World Health Organization said the crisis was 'man-made' and aid organisations urged Israel to allow more aid into the territory. Dozens of former UK diplomats have urged the country's government to recognise the Palestinian state. Fossil fuel 'duty' | States have a legal duty to stop the production and consumption of fossil fuels, the world's top court has ruled, and could be ordered to pay reparations. The case follows years of campaigning by a group of Pacific island law students and the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu. Epstein block | A US judge on Wednesday denied a justice department bid to unseal grand jury transcripts related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in south Florida. Newly uncovered photos and video footage published by CNN show more links between the notorious paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump, including Epstein at Trump's wedding to Marla Maples in 1993. Meanwhile the Wall Street Journal is reporting that Trump's name appears in the Epstein files 'multiple times'. Macron suit | Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron are suing the rightwing American commentator Candace Owens for claims that the French president is controlled by the CIA and his wife is a man. UK | A surgeon from Cornwall who carried out hundreds of amputations has appeared in court accused of lying over how he lost his own legs and encouraging another man to remove the body parts of others. The many controversies of Mark Latham Chief political correspondent Tom McIlroy speaks to Reged Ahmad about how the latest controversy around Mark Latham has sparked a debate about whether his portrait should still hang in Parliament House. Sorry your browser does not support audio - but you can download here and listen $ A federal government program that gives a 30% subsidy on home batteries has sparked an 'off the charts' surge in installations with households on track to have 10,000MW of battery capacity by 2030 – equal to half of the current coal generation capacity, Graham Readfearn reports. One analyst says the boom 'completely destroys the business case for a gas turbine and also the high evening prices that coal generators rely on'. Six authors are in the running for the Miles Franklin book award, to be announced today. Joseph Steinberg runs the rule over the contenders, which include Julie Janson's sequel to her dramatisation of the lives of her Indigenous ancestors, murder stories by Fiona McFarlane, and Michelle de Kretser's novel Theory and Practice, set in 1980s Melbourne. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Cricket | India made a solid start to the fourth Test in Manchester, ending the day on 264-4 after being put into bat – but their progress was marred by a broken foot for Rishabh Pant. Cycling | Jonathan Milan won a rain-soaked sprint finish in Valence to take his second stage win in this year's Tour de France as the backlash against 'arrogant' race leader Tadej Pogacar gathered momentum. Football | Spain and Germany battled it out for the right to play England in the final of the Women's Euros. Catch up with the action here. Labor branches are in revolt over the government's failure to take a tougher line on Israel, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. The Australian claims only three New Zealanders have enlisted in the ADF since people from the Five Eyes partners were invited to join. The man behind Brisbane's huge Queens Wharf development has been tasked with delivering 17 Olympic venues, the Courier Mail reports. Business | The board of Macquarie Bank faces a possible shareholder revolt over pay when its annual general meeting starts in Sydney at 10.30am. Sydney | Federal court judgment in Qatar strip-search case. Economy | Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock will face questions about rate policy. If you would like to receive this Morning Mail update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here, or finish your day with our Afternoon Update newsletter. You can follow the latest in US politics by signing up for This Week in Trumpland. And finally, here are the Guardian's crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword
The Guardian
23-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Australian bookmaker Betr accused of drawing more than half of January gambling profits from 20 customers
A major Australian bookmaker has been accused of generating more than half of its gambling profits from just 20 customers in January. The accusation was made to the Australian Stock Exchange by the gambling company Pointsbet, which is resisting a hostile takeover bid by rival company Betr, which was previously partly owned by News Corporation. On Wednesday, Pointsbet's directors rejected Betr's offer and encouraged shareholders to instead accept a competing bid from the Japanese company, Mixi. During early states of negotiations, Pointsbet and Betr agreed to conduct due diligence and share financial and operational details. Sign up: AU Breaking News email After assessing that information, Pointsbet told the ASX that Betr had a 'less valuable and volatile VIP heavy customer base' and that shareholders would be exposed to Betr's existing operations if the bid were accepted. In April, Betr was reported as having around 340,000 customers. Around 150,000 were considered active. Pointsbet alleges that more than 50% of Betr's net win in January came from a tiny percentage of that customer base. Betr and Pointsbet were both contacted for comment. Both companies declined to clarify whether the January 2025 figures cited by Pointsbet were representatives of Betr's longer term financial and operational position. Pointsbet declined to state whether the January figures were an outlier. In its note to the ASX, Pointsbet told shareholders there were 'meaningful risks associated with a VIP-heavy customer base' including greater 'compliance and regulatory risks'. In May, Pointsbet was fined $500,800 by the Australian media regulator and subjected to enforceable undertakings after breaching breaching spam and self-exclusion laws. The Australian Communications and Media Authority accused Pointsbet of sending 508 marketing messages to people who had self-excluded themselves from gambling. Two years ago, a landmark report by an inquiry led by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy said gambling companies maintained 'VIP programs to incentivise people they regard as high value customers.' Financial Counselling Australia, which represents people who have been harmed by the gambling industry, told the inquiry that high value customers are often individually managed by bookmaker staff and encouraged to keep gambling. The group did not name Betr in its submission. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion The Murphy inquiry also recommended the federal government ban all gambling advertising after a three-year transition period. So far, the federal government is yet to formally respond to that recommendation. The Albanese's government's plan to restrict gambling advertising was delayed until after the election in the face of strong opposition from sporting codes and broadcasters. On Wednesday, the communications minister Annika Wells told parliament the government had resumed consultation with broadcasters, major sporting groups and some harm reduction advocates. 'I know the minister for social services [Tanya Plibersek] and myself have been working together on this and we are committed to continuing the work of the previous ministers from the first term,' Wells told question time. So far, sources familiar with the consultation say it has focused on identifying the main objections and testing support for compromises. They say the government intends to act by the end of the year. Wells did not commit to implementing Murphy's recommendation to phase out all advertising for online gambling, but said 'the work continues' on the government's agenda to address gambling harms. Lobbyists for major gambling firms have also been seen in Parliament House this week.
AU Financial Review
04-07-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
ASX's fetish for dual-class shares is downright nuts
At last Wednesday's scheme meeting to approve the takeover of PointsBet by Japanese bidder Mixi, a representative from PointsBet's largest shareholder Betr entered Computershare's online portal to observe the proceedings. The portal was incorrectly coded so that upon entry, observers automatically revoked their already-cast proxy votes without their knowledge. Betr had cast its shares against the takeover and would've defeated the resolution, but its shares weren't counted. Whoops! PointsBet and Betr shares both traded most of Wednesday after the takeover was 'approved'. The next morning, PointsBet announced Computershare's snafu and that, actually, the takeover had failed.
AU Financial Review
30-06-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Master of the market comes in from the cold
The farrago around Pointsbet's $402 million sale to Japanese social media company Mixi has drawn its fair share of rubberneckers. Computershare botched tallying the shareholder vote last week, and missed rival Betr's attempts to block the deal. Betr wants to buy Pointsbet for itself. The brainchild of the bookmaker is the country's most famous bookmaker (and Melbourne Storm chairman) Matthew Tripp. And by swallowing up the ASX-listed Blue Bet last year, Betr became a public company.
AU Financial Review
29-06-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Computershare saves PointsBet from its own constitution
When PointsBet's proposed sale to Japanese entertainment company Mixi was waved through by 95 per cent of shareholders on Wednesday, co-founder and CEO of the gambling outfit Sam Swanell said he was ' pleasantly surprised '. No shit. It had been expecting Matt Tripp 's Betr to use its 19.9 per cent holding to block the deal, which needed a 75 per cent approval vote. But miraculously, according to vote tallier Computershare, Betr didn't vote. That's despite having its own acquisition offer on the table and publicly declaring it would veto the deal.
