Esports betting platform Puntt, which describes itself as “the world’s first esports player betting site,” has launched in the United Kingdom.
The website allows users to bet on specific esports players, not just teams, according to a release. Betting pools are open on Counter-Strike: Global Offensive in time for the ESL Pro League.
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Puntt allows adults in the United Kingdom to bet on individual players in new markets, such as most kills, and claims it will offer “leading odds on all tournaments in the CS:GO Major Championships.” Dota 2 is next in line to be added to the platform, with other prominent esports set to follow “later in 2020.”
By using a pool betting system, Puntt pits customers against each other, rather than against the odds that the bookmaker sets. It has been founded on a UK licensed proprietary platform with the stated aims of providing “a fair, dynamic and well-regulated betting experience,” with equal customer treatment and charity support listed in its founding principles. This includes the commitment to donate an unspecified percentage of company turnover to charity.
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Phill Adams, CEO of Puntt, spoke on the company’s aims in a release: “Puntt has been built to fill a glaring gap in the esports betting space – offering a fair and exciting betting product through which you back individual players as opposed to betting fixed odds on teams alone.
“After 18 months work to bring Puntt to market, and despite the current difficult circumstances, we’re incredibly excited, that we will be launching in the UK during the ESL Pro League – Season 11. For Puntt, this is just the start, with more player betting markets and more esports to be introduced over the coming months.”
Esports Insider says: Puntt has been launched with some lofty aims, but the key concept of a pool betting player-focused system is a promising idea. The extent to which they will carry through on their charitable, anti-exclusionary, and responsible gambling principles remains to be seen.