Malaysia's Genting launches UK online gambling site

KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 (Reuters) - Malaysian gambling group Genting Bhd launched its first online casino brand, CircusCasino.com, in the United Kingdom, the company said on Friday.

Genting said its wholly-owned unit Genting Stanley Alderney Limited will run the site which gives players access to more than 100 casino, card and table games.

"Players from around the world will be able to access CircusCasino.com and view the Play for Fun games," Genting said in a statement.

However, only players from the UK, Isle of Man and Channel Islands can deposit funds and actually play the games, it said.

The entrance of Genting, which owns casino chain Stanley Leisure in the United Kingdom, has been seen as a vote of confidence for the online industry still struggling after internet gambling was effectively banned in the U.S. in September 2006.

Before being bought by Genting in 2006, Stanley failed with several costly attempts to build its own internet betting site.

The Kuala Lumpur-based casino operator may use the new site as a testing ground for potential launches in Asia where many countries are in the process of reviewing online gambling rules.

Genting owns Malaysia's sole casino license. It is currently building a $4.4 billion casino resort in neighbouring Singapore.

On the Malaysian bourse, Genting shares fell 3.5 percent to 5.60 ringgit by 0303 GMT in a broader market down 1.1 percent.

(Reporting by Soo Ai Peng; Editing by Lincoln Feast)

Source