Some of MoPlay\u2019s former customers claim that Betfred is refusing to unfreeze the balances of long-term winning players. (Image: Betfred)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBetfred acquired MoPlay\u2019s customer database from a liquidator last month after the latter declared insolvency on February 22. Just days earlier, Gibraltar-based Addison Global, which traded as MoPlay, had stopped processing customer withdrawals after its gambling licenses were revoked by regulators in Gibraltar and the UK.<\/p>\n
Many MoPlay customers feared their money was lost, but Betfred\u2019s intervention offered new hope.<\/p>\n
In mid-March, MoPlay emailed its customer list to say it had been agreed that players based in the UK and Ireland would \u201cbe given the opportunity to have their cash balances honored by Betfred.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bettors would simply have to register for an account with Betfred to unfreeze the cash held in their MoPlay accounts, the email explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe apologize that it has taken so long to achieve this result for you. But it was important to ensure that the operator who we came to an agreement with was highly reputable and met strict data protection and privacy standards,\u201d read the email.<\/p>\n
Players Too Profitable?<\/strong><\/h2>\nAccording to The Guardian<\/em>, around 180,000 MoPlay accounts migrated to Betfred a few weeks ago. Some customers reported on social media that the bookmaker had honored their balances. But others said they still had no access to their funds, accusing the company of being selective about whom it paid.<\/p>\nSome MoPlay customers told the betting internet forum Justice4Punters that Betfred had chosen not to unfreeze their balances because their accounts had in the past been \u201crestricted\u201d because they were long-term winning sports bettors.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve received a fair number of complaints,\u201d Brian Chappell of Justice4Punters told The Guardian.<\/em> \u201cAll the complaints seem to have one thing in common — they have restricted betting accounts, be that with MoPlay and\/or with Betfred.<\/p>\nFrom what we\u2019ve been sent, it\u2019s certainly not clear to J4P why these customers are being treated differently, except it all seems rather commercially convenient,\u201d added Chappell.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
A Betfred spokesperson said: \u201cWe did not conduct any due diligence on the profitability of individuals in the MoPlay customer database, nor did we close any BetFred accounts to prevent migration of MoPlay balances.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur actions to date are 100 percent in accordance with the terms of the contract with the liquidator, and for those customers who did not migrate, we are directing them to the liquidator to submit a claim in the liquidation.\u201d<\/p>\n