by Anton Johan
After confirming last week that it would be going ahead with planned flotation on the London Stock Exchange valued at £1.5 billion, Betfair has apparently drawn up a contingency plan that could see the group move its operations to Gibraltar.
Rumours are high that Betfair will follow in the footsteps of its rival William Hill in a bid to save millions of pounds in taxes.
By operating offshore, Betfair will also be free of the heavy 10% horseracing levy that all bookies in the United Kingdom are subject to.
Gross Profit Tax (GPT) in Gibraltar is only 3%, compared to the 15% demanded by the UK government.
Bookmakers have long complained over the government's inaction over offshore gambling sites, as well as ever-increasing taxes on local UK gambling operations.
It is believed that while Betfair has no immediate plans to quit the United Kingdom, it has drawn up a plan that would make the move simpler if and when the time comes.
A spokesman for Betfair would neither confirm nor deny the rumours and said: "No decision has been made but like every company Betfair puts in place contingency plans for the risks facing its business."
Betfair could save literally millions of dollars by moving offshore, as can be seen through the example of other groups who have done so before.
Last week, Betfair attracted enough orders from investors to cover all the shares that it offered for its LSE listing.
The 10% of shares was oversubscribed after the fist day, according to banking sources.
The group is considered one of the world's biggest betting exchanges and processes five million bets each day.
