With the 2016 World cup fully in swing, where can you get the best odds on England matches.

The answer is simple, use a betting exchange.  Betting exchanges provide a market place for punters to match up bets, rather than odds being quoted by a traditional bookie.  Because of this the odds are much better and you can win more money – the aim of the game.

It’s also just as easier, if not easier in some cases to navigate the online platforms.  Smarkets betting exchange offers can excellent clear betting platform, they have the best odds out of the online betting exchanges, plus the lowest commission, only 2% (only on winning bets).  Plus, you get a free £10 bet when you sign up.

Here is a quick exchange showing quite clearly why you can win more by getting better odds on the 2016 world cup by betting with a betting exchange.

In this example we’ll look at betting on England to be the overall winner of the 2016 Rugby World Cup.

If you bet £100 with Smarkets betting exchange you’ll win £679.81 (you only win £500 with bet365)

Compare the odds below:

So by simply switching you’re betting to a betting exchange like Smarkets you can win an extra £179.81 on exactly the same bet.  This is why betting exchanges are places the smart punters place bets and make money.

If you want to read up on the best betting exchanges (there are actually only three – Betfair, BetDaq and Smarkets) you can view our betting exchange comparison tables here.  Or if you are feeling explorative you can compare all the traditional bookie prices against betting exchanges prices by looking at the top ten bookies in the UK here.

With a betting exchange you can also pretend you are a bookie and lay bets.  So you can bet on a team losing.

Another fun way to bet on the 2016 Rugby World Cup is through Spread betting.  There are only two, Spreadex and Sporting Index.  Both offer some really obscure markets where the real money can be made and there are good sign up bonuses for opening a new account.

Sporting Index will give you a £100 no deposit (keep the profits) bet when you open an account.

Spreadex will give you an Apple watch or iPad once you’ve put a few bets through.

Both sports spread betting bookies are regulated by the FCA, have been around ages and are well respected in the business.

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Whilst the other major bookies released a flurry of profit warnings after the favorites romped home at the Cheltenham festival this year Smarkets betting exchange smiles.

The upstart betting exchange which aims to compete with Betfair and Betdaq by offering a reduced commission rate (they only charge 2% as opposed to Betfair’s 5%) released an inforgraphic to show exactly how far they have come since being founded in 2008.

You can view the figures about how much business flows through the Smarkets exchange on the inforgraphic below.  Obviously to punters the only section that is of any interest at all is the fact that compared to William Hill, bet365, Ladbrokes, Coral and Paddy Power you would have won up to 24.3% more.

For punters this is good news, as betting exchanges always provide the best odds when betting online.

Once thing to bear in mind though is that whilst betting exchanges do provide better odds you can’t bet on multiples, and for smaller exchanges like Smarkets you will often find it hard to get a decent price on a pcae bet.  For that you need the better liquidity provided by Betfair and Betdaq.

The bigger betting exchanges were left out of the odds comparison by Smarkets say that the info graphic is there to highlight what had been achieved on the site and how it had performed with the volume of customers that we dealt with over the festival week.

Smarkets is still on of the easiest betting exchanges to use with such a simple interface. Well worth signing up for the £10 in free bets to get you started.

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Imagine your delight at finding that you can bet on a rank outsider to lose a race, with odds of 100-1?

This is a situation that arose during April 2016 on one of the popular betting exchange websites.

After visiting the Smarkets betting exchange, Tony Mapplebeck found another user offering a bet to back Thatsallimsaying, a runner in a 4 horse race, to lose. This was just before the start of the race and Mapplebeck found that there was a minimum price of 1.01 (100-1 odds) with more than £30,000 available.

Mapplebeck made the move to match the bet of around £35 which would yield a win of £3,302.

Unsurprisingly, Thatsallimsaying came last in the race and Mapplebeck found that his bank account was soon credited with his winnings of £3,302.75. However, less than an hour later he was surprised to receive an email from Smarkets directly which informed him that all bets at 1.01 on that horse were being declared void due to a user error. His winnings were removed from his bank account shortly after.

Mistakes do happen on betting exchanges, especially during those frenzied minutes prior to the race. This means that even experienced users may end up backing a horse that they instead wanted to lay, or the same happening the other way round.

High volume gamblers can also utilise automated betting programmes which can place multiple bets on their behalf. The very nature of the system can mean that they occasionally malfunction, causing the better some expensive consequences.

It has always been the case that any mistakes that occur are paid for by the betters who make them; keeping up the knowledge that matched bets will be honoured.

With this in mind, and feeling wronged by the situation; Mapplebeck decided to take the case to Ibas. It took them several months to come to a decision, however in September 2016, they came to the judgment that the case should be ruled in your favour.

The ruling shows that Ibas believed that the account which had offered the bet was hacked. Leading to the entire balance being offered at 1.01. It is thought that because the stake set out by Mapplebeck only accounted for 10% of the total, there were other betters who had taken advantage of the mistake, however had their bets voided and were denied their payout.

This means that there is still £28,000 which could be available to claim, however, this is yet to be confirmed by Smarket.

Smarket is not the only betting exchange available to choose from. Betdaq and Betfair are other options to consider. One thing to remember is that it is easy to make mistakes on these markets and therefore, it is important to approach any betting that you carry out with care.

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Although there have been a number of horse racing margins that have affected the gambling industry recently, these poor margins were counteracted with a lift from bets made during Euro 2016, which has seen Paddy Power Betfair enjoy a 25 percent rise in revenues. As such, shares of Paddy Power Betfair topped the FTSE1000 risers thanks to revenues of £404 million in the three months leading to the end of September.

The company was created as part of a merger between fixed odds bookie Paddy Power, and betting exchange Betfair, based in Dublin and London respectively. The merger was completed back in February, and since then the newly-formed partnership announced that revenues of £16 million had been generated in July, which made for a total of £38 million for the Euro 2016 tournament overall.

Alternative betting exchanges to Betfair  include Smarkets and BetDaq.

Chief Executive Breon Corcoran attributed the poor horse racing margins to spikes in customer wins, but had been set right by other sporting results. As a result, forecasts that were raised from £50 million to £65 million are also coming through earlier than expected, which means the expected benefits of £30 million actually amounted to £35 million. This means that the company’s forecast for underlying earnings is set to be between £390 million and £405 million, which is an increase from the previous range which was at £365 million and £385 million respectively.

Mr Corcoran also stated that a number of changes within the industry could potentially happen. This includes an increase in horse racing levies, as well as a clampdown on bet  advertising as well as the potential removed of gaming machines in Britain. Despite the uncertainty, Mr Corcoran is confident that Paddy Power Betfair will be able to trade through it. The company’s Australian arm could also be affected, due to the banning of in-play betting in Australia.

Overall, underlying earnings increased by 53 percent in the third quarter, which translates to 49 percent at constant currency, to £113 million. Operating profits see an increase, jumping from 68 percent to yield £95 million.

The online revenues associated with Paddy Power Betfair increased 20 percent to £222 million. The Australian arm of the company also enjoyed a 21 percent rise in online revenue. Betting via the Passy Power brick-and-mortar betting shops in both Ireland and the UK saw a 19 percent rise in profits, delivering £76 million, with a like-for-like growth of nine percent. Despite the retail sector making for less than 20 percent of the business as a whole, Mr Corcoran said that the company would continue to open betting shops, which analysts predict will be 20 to 25 per year.

When asked if Mr Corcoran expected to see the latest trend of mergers continue, he said he wasn’t sure. However, he did state that it was unlikely Paddy Power Betfair would be looking to secure any future mergers, stating that ‘we’re too busy, thanks very much.’

Another surprising betting market for the company was the recent US presidential election, which had surpassed more than £100 million. The betting market was as surprised as the political world when Trump was a success, especially as Paddy Power paid out more than $1 million on Clinton being the victor. Before the presidency was decided, Corcoran has actually stated that if Trump did become President, the company would end up with egg on its face.

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I can understand why Smarkets don’t have an app.

It’s pretty simple really, they are a new company nipping at the heals of the more established betting exchanges and trying to win business with lower commission.

The problem with lower commission though is you have to work a lot harder and earn a lot less.  betfair’s commission for example is 5% and Smarkets 2%. Which means that if Smarkets by some massive growth spurt process the same amount of bets as Betfair they will earn less than have as much in commission and even less in profits.

So, how do you streamline operations to increase margins. You don’t bother with an app.  The Smarkets website and front end must be enough for the young company to maintain whilst also keeping liquidity providers happy.  So the additional resources to the APP could be considered a waste of time.

In most cases a mobile version of the website is just as good. And thank fully that is the case as Smarkets.

I remember the first time I used Smarkets on the go. I was at Sandown Park, which is the really the only race track I visit, with exception of Royal Ascot.

The mobile version was horrific, as it was basically just the website and it kept logging me out in between races.

Anyway, I’m not going to bore you with the features of the new mobile site as there is not really much more to it than it works properly on the go now.

If you want to give it a go, you can sign up with Smarkets here and get a free £10 bet.

Oh and here are some pictures….

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When I read an update on linkedin that Bookee was a Tinder of sports bookies I let out an immediate groan of despair.

Not more “gamtech” trying to change the way we gamble.  Plus, I just couldn’t see how Bookee the new gambling app that uses the swipe left or right tinder’esque interface would make betting any more enjoyable.

My first thought was that surely this would only appeal to those who are massively bored and so uninterested in actually winning a bet they can’t be bothered to do any research but just want to place random bets.

The other thing I immediately don’t like is the Tinder swipe left and right. I find a nice scrolling screen or small font betting tables easier to look at. But then that’s my personal preference. But that’s important because all bookies and odds are essentially the same. The only real difference is colour scheme and layout and people generally like what they like.

It was also a real pain that if you accidentally swipe the wrong way you can’t actually “undo” the swipe. So you miss a bet you potentially wanted to place.

There is a similar app in the crowdfunding space that started off with a tinder swipe interface called Off3r. That’s a sort of cross over between fintech and gamtech because investing in startups is very high risk. As with betting on horses “you pays your money, you takes your chance” and you know that by risking a little you can potentially win a lot.

So anyway,  off we trotted with app in hand loaded with a bank busting £25 to Sandown for an afternoon of races.

We chose an actual racetrack because sitting on the sofa lethargy took over and there if you are looking for random bets there are so many more exciting ways to lose a few quid like play “live roulette“.

Also, I am a shockingly bad at betting on the horses. To be honest, I don’t even look at the odds, I just pick a funny name, grab a pint and hope for the best.

So in this respect Bookee may be for me.  After, I’d placed my usual bets with the gruff Barry the bookie and the charming gents from Spreadex, I flipped open the Bookee App and had a flick through.

Narrowed the field down to horse racing and got swiping. There were quite a few cards to flick through before getting to a Sandown race and to be honest I didn’t even bother looking at the odds or race times (a few were for races already finished) but was just happy for them to put a bet in front of me.

So each time a Sandown race came up I put a few quid on the presented options. I don’t know how the bets are generated. I was thinking of getting in touch to find out, but until some gamtech over funded start up develops an algorithm for presenting bets that have a better change than their odds of winning I’m not really bothered. So I just went with the flow.

Placing a bet is easy enough. Connectivity is good and you can see your open bets.

Anyway, a few beers and a few comments about why the heck likely lads come to the races on a rainy day in February with summer loafers and no socks on later I gleefully logged back in to the Bookee App to withdraw my winnings.

I knew I had one at least one winner because as this was a gamtech review, and a bet had swiped into view for Another Venture and the name stuck in my mind.

Plus I had Another Venture in an accumulator with Spreadex and to win with “Barry the bookie” so all in all it was a good day.

That’s in part due to the randomly generated bets from Bookee.

It’s just a good fun app that adds another bit of randomness to the the world of gambling.

We should probably also have a look to see if the odds on Bookee are any good so here is a quick comparison between them and Smarkets (the betting exchange with 2% commission).

To compare Bookee odds, I just opened the app and picked the first bet that came up: Anthony Joshua vs. Wladimir Klitschko

Amazingly Bookee had better odds 7/10 versus 1.47. So there you go…

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As the sun was out, we trotted off for another day at Sandown Racecourse.  And there is a new kid muscling in on Bet365 for sponsorship in the form of the final in the big four of betting exchanges: Matchbook.

Matchbook advertising in the Sandown Guide. Get the Lay of your Life. Worth opening an account just for their sense of humour.

I remember when Matchbook (read Matchbook reviews here) started no-one really took seriously. But now it appears to have been taken over buy some proper investor types who want to compete with the likes of the two established betting exchanges Betfair and Betdaq, as well as pummel Smarkets, the other growing betting exchange that came on the scenes with discounted commission.

When we first looked at Smarkets as a viable alternative to Betfair it seemed like a good choice because they were offering discounted commissions of 2% rather than Betfair’s 5%.  If you were a trader or an arbitrager or playing about with matched betting then this was quite appealing.

But is trying to win business on cost really enough for a new betting exchange?

Probably not. The difference between 1.5% and 2% is negligible, and for Matchbook to become the leading betting exchange they need to 3.33x more business than Betfair as opposed to Smarkets which only needs to process 2.5x the bet values.  But that’s pretty boring and with the “gamtech innovation revolution” as we like to call it the fixed costs of running Smarkets and Matchbook should be lower than Betfair. After all Betfair pioneered and leads the industry and as a result must bear the development and innovation costs for new companies to copy and follow.

There is nothing wrong with discounted commission though. Gamtech & fintech are lowing the cost for consumers (gamblers) so it is possible for them to win more money by  getting betting odds with lower commissions.

A race to then bottom when it comes to commission though is already happening across the financial services industry and there is a problem. Everyone one is going out of business because they are not making enough money to pay for advertising to get new customers because there are now so many new brands starting up everyday.

In theory it costs nothing to do business if you put the right technology in place with the right partners. So the brand with the biggest marketing budget who can afford to lose the most money when client grabbing will lead the industry.

I still like Betfair’s steadfast approach to high commission levels. They are the John Lewis of the gambling world if you will. They simple say we are the best and it will cost you more to do business with us.  Which is fine for somethings, but when you come down to the dirty business of winning money off people you want to get as much as you can!

So how can Matchbook compete with the bigger betting exchanges if a race to the bottom on pricing isn’t going to cut it?

• They can offer a better sign up bonus for new customers. Matchbook are currently offering £50 cashback, which is the highest value betting exchange welcome offer at the moment.
• They can offer multi-currency accounts. Matchbook currently offer more currencies to bet in than any other exchange.
• They can offer a better user experience and match liquidity and markets. Matchbook currently offer more peripheral markets thanks to their global client base.

You can sign  up with Matchbook here.

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Smarkets, the alternative betting exchange to Betfair and Betdaq saw group profit increase 160 % to £13.7m in 2016 with revenue increasing by 144% to £25.4m

Normally, when a bookie posts stellar results and announces that £2.7bn worth of bets were placed, the first thought an analyst has is “those poor punters”.

But not so for Smarkets, unlike traditional bookies who win when the punters lose, Smarkets is a betting exchange and makes it’s money from commission on bets.

So what’s actually good for Smarkets is sophisticated gamblers who either trade the sports in play or simply want better odds on straight bets.

Chief executive Jason Trost said:

“Our mission is clear; we are striving to establish ourselves as a top-tier technology company. I strongly believe that the results of the past two years show the positive trajectory of the business, demonstrate our significant growth opportunities and confirm our ability to challenge an industry ripe for disruption.”

Smarkets (read our Smarkets review) do claim that they are disrupting an industry but truth be told the online gambling industry was disrupted a long time ago by well deserved industry leader Betfair.

However, what Smarkets are doing is winning business by reducing commission to 2%. This is in comparison to Betfair’s 5% starting commission rate.

Betfair was of course around before the current fintech revolution where founders are using the efficiencies of fintech and influx of investment o undercut industry leaders with lower fees. So yes, Smarkets is a good thing.

It’s a bit like Uber, it’s good for the consumer because you get better odds and it’s good for the liquidity providers because profit margins can be increase because there is another playing in the field creating more competative pricing.

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SBC reports that Matchbook betting exchange purchased by Triplebet in 2012 has secured a lumpy sum on investment gee gee.

Or as they put it, a ‘significant investment transaction’ that will ‘considerably grow the trajectory’ of its business.

Which basically means Matchbook Betting Exchange has partners up with some rich people that know what they are doing. We hope this means in terms of client aquisition and rentention beucase that’s what drives a business like this.

Clearly, good technology, customer service and liquidity, followed by discounted commission to steal business from Betfair are all key componunts of running a successfull betting exchange, but getting and keeping customers is the real challange.

Especially as Matchbook are trying to win business (like the other upstart betting exchange Smarkets) by offering lower commission than Betfair.

But discount pricing is a race to the bottom isn’t always a good thing. Sure, you get bums on seats, but if you charge a third of the commission than the industry leader you have to do three times the business to match pound for pound revenue.

Betdaq charge slightly less than Betfair, Smarkets charge slightly less than Betdaq and Matchbook charge slightly less than Smarkets.

Bit of a patern emerging n’es pas???

Anyway, we digress, hopefully this injection of cash which will no doubt go towards advertising and getting some experienced and knowledgable advisors on board will mean that Matchbook can start offering more liquiduty on markets that UK punters want. So far they have been focussing on the US really, and who knows what’s going to happen out there…

If you haven’t got a Matchbook betting exchange account you can apply here and get £50 cashback or rebate when you sign up.

Or you can compare the best betting exchange here and see for yourself how they compare in the real markets.

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Are you getting the best prices on your bets? We’ve been keeping an eye on two offers which say they give great odds – Sky Bet’s price boost and the Smarkets betting exchange.

Sky Bet’s price boost

Sky Bet says their price boosts, marked by a yellow sticker on the app or website, offer outstanding value. The sell is that they let you win even more than standard prices and that they cover the most popular sporting events.

Price Boosts can sometimes even be combined within multiple types of bet, such as an accumulator. You can spot those restricted to single bets only as they have a blue I icon next to them. SkyBet is, to all intents and purposes, a traditional bookmaker.

Smarkets betting exchange

Smarkets betting exchange is one of the new breed of betting opportunities. Betting exchanges have disrupted the industry as more and more bettors realise the value of an exchange compared to traditional bookmakers.

An exchange offers a platform for bettors to trade the outcome of certain events, whether that be sport, politics or current affairs. It differs to traditional sportsbooks by allowing bettors to bet against each other, rather than a bookmaker.

Instead of being limited to the odds set by bookies, and only having the option to back a certain outcome, an exchange allows users to go head-to-head against each other by either backing or laying and start sports trading.

Not always a great deal

In practice that can mean great prices, but not always. For example, looking at the upcoming Rangers-Celtic match in the Scottish Premiership, there are several options available from Smarkets – all depending on the amount of risk you want to take.

If you take the bet of Rangers winning 2-1, then a decent, middle of the risk road price on Smarkets would give you a £125 return for your £10 stake. With Sky Bet, that return is £175. That’s not to say that betting exchanges can’t be a good option but don’t rule out the benefits of getting a great promotional price. Check out other free bets and offers here

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Smarkets, a small betting exchange firm, is making waves in the industry. Their last annual report shows profits soaring by 160% over 2016 to £13.7m, while revenue rose 144% to £26.2m. Meanwhile, their average monthly users were up 118%, and the company boasted almost 200,000 total users.

While these figures may seem small in the face of some of the sports spread betting and sports trading giants that dominate the industry, Smarkets is pressing on with a belief that they can take on their competitors through their strong focus on price, volume and technology. CEO Jason Trost was quoted in Marketing Week, professing an intention to disrupt what he describes as the “shady” gambling industry.

“We describe ourselves as a tech company. Why? Because betting companies are shady. They are basically run like online casinos for entertainment only and they have very questionable ads.” Trost went on to suggest companies like Paddy Power are “just trying to bilk as much money as possible out of customers.”

Since it was founded in 2008, Smarkets has certainly succeeded in distinguishing itself from the industry giants it’s up against. It doesn’t run any casino games, bingo, blackjack or poker. Instead, it centres around event betting alone, offering a peer-to-peer exchange in which customers can bet for or against an event occurring. Trost, who has a degree in computer science and a history in the world of equity trading, saw a gap in the market, and set out on a mission to provide an easier platform for people to bet on.

It seems that Smarkets’ main unique selling point is its price – boasting both the best prices and lowest commission available. While Trost acknowledges that his company’s profit margins are less than half of what many of his company’s matched betting competitors make, he’s spurred on by his belief that he can outdo them through Smarkets’ focus on tech.

Trost affirms:

“There is an impulse to run the traditional marketing playbook for betting and there are traditional things we could do to make more money. But I’m more interested in the Silicon Valley approach – getting to 100% market share and figuring out how to monetise later.”

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If you have spent any time at all in the world of online gambling and betting exchanges, matched betting will have cropped up. It is seen as something of a holy grail in betting as it offers the chance to bet on an event and make certain that, whatever happens, you win. It must be said this is entirely legal but often frowned upon by traditional bookmakers.

How does matched betting work?

In simple terms, matched betting is where you place a bet on one outcome happening with a bookmaker and then lay off the exact same thing on a betting exchange. By doing this, you will win one of the bets and therefore be making a profit overall. The key to this is matching up the odds closely for each outcome you wager on and using free bets from bookmakers as a way of locking in profit.

Why is Smarkets so good for matched betting?

There are two key reasons why Smarkets is so good for this type of betting compared to some of the other betting exchanges out there. The first, and probably most important, is that they only charge 2% commission on your winnings if the lay bet comes in. Although this doesn’t seem much, if you follow this type of betting a lot this can add up to more money coming your way over a year, which makes this betting exchange a wise choice.

The second reason Smarkets is great for matched betting is the sheer amount of unusual events you can bet on, such as politics. This enables you to get some great lay bets on there that other betting exchanges may not offer at all. This range of markets really does make Smarkets stand-out when compared to other exchanges such as Matchbook.

If you are looking to enter into the world of matched betting then Smarkets is certainly a great option to consider as your exchange of choice to lay on. As well as the above, it is a great site to use for sports trading and sports spread betting and usually has some of the best odds around to take.

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The governance of online betting exchange operator Matchbook.com has recently issued a market update. Matchbook Group have announced that they have just completed a ‘significant investment transaction’ that will allow them to significantly grow the scope business and increase its range of markets and opportunities for bettors.

New scope and opportunities

Although the exact amount of the investment that has been secured was not revealed, Matchbook governance were keen to tell bettors that through this new source of funding they had increased their reach and hoped to provide new betbeting and trading opportunities. The funding has been used to bring on board new strategic investors with lots of expertise in international expansion and in horse racing.

This news comes on the back of recent improvements that the London and Cork based operator has made to its betting exchange product and enhancements that have been made to the organisation’s brand. Matchbook.com is now standing alongside the likes of Smarkets, Sporting Index, and Spreadex in offering punters a robust and navigable platform for sports betting and sports trading. Although sports spread betting is not yet offered by the exchange, it looks likely that this may form one of their future plans.

Future plans

Matchbook is looking to become an increasingly credible force in the already crowded sports betting market. Matchbook CEO, Mark Brosnan, commented that he intended to use the investment to end Betfair’s dominance in the betting exchange market. Over the last 12 months Matchbook has experienced tremendous growth, largely thanks to the horse racing product range that was introduced last year. The latest deal will help Matchbook to offer further products to the betting public, potentially including sports spread betting.

Even though matched betting is not encouraged, Matchbook will continue to offer tempting incentives and bonuses for both new and existing customers, hoping that many matched bettors will continue to use their exchange in preference to competitors such as Smarkets, Betdaq, and Betfair.

Matchbook is currently offering a £500 commission refund in punters’ first five weeks of betting through their exchange. Depending on the nature of the bet, Matchbook currently charges either 1.75% or 0.75% commission on volume, making their exchange a particularly attractive proposition for matched bettors who will pay 2% through Smarkets or 5% through Betfair.

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If you’re up to date with developments in the betting exchange industry, you’ll likely be aware that Smarkets have grown exponentially in the last five years, and in 2016/17 saw more than £1bn traded. It’s no secret that much of this success has come as a result of them being an incredibly popular choice for matched bettors.

An intuitive interface, industry-low commissions and good liquidity make this a popular choice for beginner and veteran matched bettors alike. However, there are those who choose to use Smarkets other than for matched betting, and here is why you may consider doing the same.

1. Suggesting tips

This is a new feature that has recently been rolled out and is the company’s attempt to create a more personal experience. It looks at your recent betting activity and generates suggestions based on what kinds of events you like. If you use Smarkets wholly for matched betting then this feature may not be useful, seeing as you end up betting on a wide host of random events depending on where free bets are being offered. However, if you are more interested in using Smarkets as a typical betting platform, then this feature could be helpful.

2. Odds created by the marketplace

When deciding on odds, bookies naturally use a system whereby the odds are ever in their favour to make long-term profits. This means slicing value off the odds they offer, so they will never be out of pocket. However, Smarkets runs on market sports trading and the odds are decided based on where people are placing their money. This doesn’t always mean that odds are better, but, in many cases, they are. Though it’s true Smarkets will take a 2% commission on your winnings, the better odds can more than account for this. Much lower than Betfair’s 5%

3. No restrictions

The most frustrating thing you can experience is when a bookie restricts your account based on your actions and whether or not they think you are exploiting the account. The great thing is that Smarkets have no such restrictions and you are free to bet on whatever you want with how much you want – as long as there is liquidity, of course. If you’re a matched bettor but are annoyed about accounts being restricted, Smarkets will always be there for any back bets you fancy placing.

Smarkets, like any other exchange, is definitely not without its flaws, but it seems a common theme that many consider Smarkets only a tool for matched bettors. Instead, you could start using it to reap easier and greater rewards for more typical betting practices.

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It’s really no surprise that popularity for matched betting has grown exponentially in recent years, as more and more people see it as a great way to make extra cash on the side of their day job. When starting out, you’ll quickly find that many blogs and other sites recommend using Smarkets for all the lay bets, and many will simply only use this platform. However, by doing this you could be missing out on a lot of extra earnings. In actual fact, there are a number of other platforms, each of which offers unique opportunities to maximise your profits. Here are two other common betting exchanges you should try out.

Betfair Exchange

No doubts Betfair bookmakers already prove a useful spot for you to earn some free bets, but they also offer a very advanced betting exchange as well. The Betfair Exchange charges 5% commission as opposed to the 2% charged by Smarkets. Though more expensive, it is still popular because it tends to offer more sporting games, such as weekend accumulators, which allows you to lay for potential profits against boosted accumulators offered by bookmakers. Just be sure to avoid using Betfair Exchange for laying against bets placed on Betfair bookmakers as this is a fast way to get restricted on both.

Matchbook

Matchbook is proving an increasingly popular exchange as it offers incredibly competitive commissions which often range from just 0.75% to 1.5%. As well as this, they offer an intuitive interface as well as many more unique betting opportunities, such as political outcomes. One criticism they come under is a lack of market liquidity, though for all mainstream popular sporting events, this tends not to be an issue. Sports traders are also finding that liquidity is continuing to get better as the site gets more popular. One thing to note is that it does tend to offer fewer sporting events than Smarkets and Betfair and can have fewer options to bet on, such as no “First Goalscorer”.

It’s important to realise that matched betting is a skill that takes months and years of practice, and by trying out all the exchanges possible, you’ll be in the best possible position to maximise your profits and get the most out of the experience. Just bear in mind that, if you’re just starting out and your bankroll is limited, it may be best to stick to one exchange at the start until you build up the amount of money you have to play with.

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This month our bookie of the month is the little betting exchange Smarkets.

If you are not familiar with Smarkets they have been nipping a the heals of Betfair and BetDaq for betting exchange and sports trading customers.

They’ve taken a discounted approach and offer 2% commission versus Betfair’s 5%.

Smarkets also offer a £10 risk free bet for new customers to help with converting new customers.

Now a Sunday Times Fast Track Tech 100 company they increased matched bets from £1bn in 2015 to over £3bn in 2016.

But what do the punters think?

We want to know, so give Smarkets a go and write a review to claim £10.

Go to Smarkets and write your review here: http://www.betopin.com/smarkets

Terms and conditions are here.

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BetDaq, the second biggest betting exchange, after Betfair has upgraded it’s welcome offer to entice new customers.

Fans of betting exchanges will know that one of the main uses is matched betting, that is the art of offsetting a free bet by laying it on a betting exchange.

Betting exchanges are great for odds, because they operate on a peer-to-peer basis so the odds are often highs, not a great thing if you’re laying bets because it makes it more expensive.

So, how do you reduce betting exchange costs?

You go with a betting exchange that charges lower commission. You can compare betting exchanges and what commission they charge here. But as it stands, Betfair are the most expensive and the two smaller betting exchanges Smarkets and Matchbook are trying to win business with reduced commission rates of 2% and 1.5% respectively.

However, Betdaq normally sites in the middle which is fine. Betfair is a short of Waitrose of betting exchanges. They charge the most because they have the most liquidity and markets so can get away with it.

But what Betdaq are doing here is saying:

Set up an account with us and you’ve get the first £1,000 of bets commission free.

Which is a pretty sweet deal if you are a sports trader or using a betting exchange for matched betting.

It also smashes Matchbook’s £500 commission cashback offer.

Hopefully it’s not a race to the bottom in commission pricing, because then no betting exchange will make any money and they’ll all go bust and we’ll all have to go back to traditional bookies!

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So the Gambling Commission is apparently looking into matched betting following complaints from bookmakers

Over the last year, the UK Gambling Commission has received a number of complaints from bookmakers concerning matched betting activities being conducted through their online sites.

Exploiting promotions

The complaints made concern punters who register with a bookmaker’s website, purely to exploit new member incentives in order to make a guaranteed profit. The punter uses matched betting, which allows backers to make certain profits by using free bets at higher odds against lay bets on betting exchanges such as Smarkets, Betdaq, and Betfair.

Bookies were finding that within days of launching a new promotion, they were inundated with new members, seeking to claim the incentive, purely for use in matched betting transactions. Google Analytics revealed that the applications were all originating from the same matched betting website.

No losers

Traditionally, bookmakers have cashed-in on punters taking part in sports trading, sports spread betting, and bog-standard punting on sporting events. However, matched betting through the betting exchanges has evened-out the playing field, enabling the average bettor to enjoy a guaranteed profit on every transaction.

Matched betting sites argue that there are no losers in matched betting. The bookies still require that punters wager a certain amount through their site before qualifying for the bonuses or free bets. This virtually guarantees a profit for the bookmaker as the bettor is actually seeking to lose all their bets in order to make a higher profit through the betting exchange. The exchanges make a commission on every transaction that occurs through the exchange, and Joe Punter walks away with a guaranteed profit, so in effect everyone wins.

Multiple accounts

The bookmakers’ main beef is that matched bettors are opening up multiple accounts in false names or for ‘friends’ and ‘family’, using dodgy bank accounts or pre-paid credit cards in order to take advantage of as many free bets as possible. Most matched betting websites offer full training on how to play the system in order to make as much profit as possible, and it is this that the bookies are objecting to.

However, as there is nothing illegal in matched betting, it seems unlikely that the Gambling Commission will take any further action. The best the bookies can do is to ‘gub’ or close any accounts that they consider to be used by matched bettors, or abandon the idea of offering free bets and bonuses in order to attract new customers.

So what’s the answer?

Clearly bookies need to stop people opening up false accounts. This is pretty simple to do and is common in financial gambling through a spread betting broker.

If you want to open an account you need to prove your ID before you can trade. This means online ID checks combined with providing proof of address and photo ID.

Betfair has this technology in place and can even use your computer’s to take a snap.

The problem here for bookies is that it is hard enough to win business anyway. So if punters have the choice of opening a new account with a bookie who will let you get straight on and gamble or a bookie who makes you upload a recent utility bill before you can place a bet. It’s pretty obvious who they are going to go with.

Of course, you have to provide these ID docs when making withdrawals for anti-money laundering anyway.

So bit of a catch 22 really, unless the Gambling Commission has the teeth to say to all bookies that AML docs are required before an account can be opened to all regulated bookies then it unlikely to be embraced.

The other option is to make the welcome bonus so generous that it’s worth going through all that hassle to open your account.

For example, Sporting Index, gives new customers £100 in their account to bet with. All profits are withdraw-able, but not the original £100. But as it’s sport spread betting, it’s a little more of a thorough process to open an account.

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Smarkets, one of the four betting exchanges and hot of the heals of coming 25th in the FT 1000 (of Europe’s growing companies) has placed 4th in the Deloitte Fast 50, based on a staggering revenue growth of 5,390% over the last four years.

In case you haven’t used Smarkets or any betting exchange for that matter, the benefit is instead of betting against a traditional bookie setting odds like William Hill. Betting exchanges offer a peer to peer market place, or exchange for punters to set odds and those who disagree to lay odds.

The process as a rule means that the odds are better than bookies, because individuals are by nature less risk averse than companies.

Scanning through the list of the Deloitte Fast 50, Smarkets are the only gambling company, although the main winners are highly scalable businesses such as Deliveroo, who connect hungry people with food, Bloom & Wilde, who send flowers and MoveGB, which connects people with gyms.

Stratajet comes in 5th and connects people to private jet hire.

Bit of a pattern here?

Pick an industry, get a massive amount of funding, spend a little on tech, a lot on marketing, connect buyers with sellers and become the Uber of X.

Smarkets has won business consistently from larger betting exchanges such as Betfair and Betdaq, by offering discounted commission or another home for matched bettors.  At the moment, Matchbook offers the lowest commission, but covers mainly American sports.

As yet, no API connection to multiple betting exchange trading platforms like Stratabet, but hopefully that will be in the pipeline.

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Smarkets, the up and coming betting exchange has introduced a live charting feature for implied odds for desktop clients.

In a release to clients Smarkets said

We’re excited to bring you live charts for the first time. You can now track a selection’s implied probability, follow trends in the market and identify trading opportunities from your desktop. Watch live price movements in the event build-up and choose your moment to trade in-play.

This is quite a nifty feature and one that puts Smarkets ahead of the other three betting exchanges, namely Betfair, BetDaq and Matchbook (who don’t even have charts – booooooo).

Here’s a quick look at the odds charts available on the other betting exchanges in comparison to how slick the new offering from Smarkets is.

Betfair Charts

BetDaq Charts

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