Anurag Dikshit, the Indian born self made billionaire, who helped found giant
gambling group, Party Gaming at the age of 25, has announced that he has
sold a major portion of his 28% stake in the company in a bid to "move away from
the industry and Party Gaming."
Dikshit was a young computer geek who was commissioned by Ruth Parasol to
develop software for a gambling company in 1998.
The company soon developed into one of the largest floating gambling
companies in the world, and the sale of Dikshit's shares earned him GBP 188
million this week.
Dikshit's decision to move away from Party Gaming comes ahead of the guilty
sentence that he will receive in the United States after reaching a plea bargain
with authorities in a case that involved breaking local gambling laws between
1997 and 2006.
Dikshit's agreement with the authorities has meant that he will need to pay
$300 million in forfeiture fees.
While Party Gaming shares reacted wildly to Dikshit's announcement by
dropping nearly 16% on the London Stock Exchange, experts were rushing to calm
nervous investors.
"We do not expert this sale to lead to disposals by the other principal
shareholders as Dikshit has taken a different stance with regards to pleading
guilty to illegal internet gambling last year," said an analyst with Morgan
Stanley.
"We also do not think this reflects any "edge" Dikshit might have on
regulatory, trading or other developments as he is not involved in these areas,
devoting his time and money to philanthropy.
A spokesperson for Dikshit said that the Gibraltar based billionaire would
channel the money earned from the shares sale into his charitable funds.
