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What is Mega Mine?
Younger patrons are increasingly familiar with crypto, but the lack of regulatory adoption in the regulated space can push bettors to offshore or unlicensed platforms, most of which do accept it. At the ICE Barcelona conference in 2025, a panel of international sports betting CEOs lamented the fact that they were barred from adopting crypto, while their black-market competitors were not.
A report released in June by payment provider Paysafe said the percentage of online sports bettors who dabble in crypto is 64%, more than double the US average of 30%. Crypto deposits are only legal in two states, Wyoming and Colorado, but crypto withdrawals are not legal anywhere – 85% of respondents said they would welcome withdrawals as an option, Paysafe said.
“When permitted, crypto would become a top-three payment option for funding deposits (after digital wallets and debit cards), and a top-two payment preference in New York and Illinois,” the report said.
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Beyond offering crypto payment solutions, a number of black market operators are licensed in “light touch” offshore jurisidictions which use opaque offshore operating structures to help to obscure company ownership and make local enforcement against these companies complex, the report noted.
By comparison, the long tail of smaller black market sites rely heavily on affiliates to generate traffic.
Much of the onus for the increasing black market is put on increasingly restrictive policies enforced by regulators across the licensed sector.
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The Telegraph noted that it does not claim any funds allegedly misappropriated from MFS were used to finance Raja’s gambling.
Company creditors have alleged a shortfall of more than £1.3 billion ($1.7 billion), while administrators have accused Raja of orchestrating a scheme through which funds were systematically extracted from MFS and related entities.
A separate lawsuit brought on behalf of creditors alleges Raja received more than £408 million ($545 million) from funds managed by MFS into personal bank accounts across the UK, Monaco, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates, according to The Telegraph.