ONLINE GAMBLING
So you like the odds on Wall Street but don't have the cash to play at the high-stakes Internet stock tables? No worries: Now you can bet on the market without buying a single share.
Wallstreet.com, a newly launched Web site, lets financial punters bet on various events, including the closing prices of hot IPOs, the price of gold futures, and whether or not the Fed will raise interest rates. For the moment, Wallstreet.com offers wagering on only a few dozen events in the US markets, but eventually it plans to offer 24/7 casino action on financial markets around the globe.
The site is operated by Global Internet, an online casino management company, on behalf of Simpson Bay, a Saint Kitts-based gaming concern. Global Internet also operates Playersonly.com, a popular Internet casino that offers roulette, slots, video poker, and sports betting.
Patrick Carter, a Global Internet manager, says Wallstreet.com addresses a "missing market" - regular Janes and Joes who don't have the resources to directly participate in the financial markets but are mesmerized by the quick money being minted on Wall Street. "They're the ones who get addicted," says Carter.
Maybe. But given Wallstreet.com's tough odds - less than 2-for-1 for predicting the direction of interest rates - small-fry gamblers are probably better off stuffing their pennies into a mutual fund. Not only are the odds better, but investing in mutual funds is legal. In the United States, at least, online gambling isn't.
Account for human nature, though, and it's a sure bet that Wallstreet.com will be a runaway success. The site has already paid out one big jackpot: Three men from Arizona and New Mexico split the $1.03 million they pocketed by selling the Wallstreet.com domain name to Simpson Bay back in April. The trio paid $100 to register the name in 1994.
Wallstreet.com: www.wallstreet.com.
NEW MONEY
T-minus $10 Billion
Point-and-Click Angels
Playing the Market
Quote
Summer Sale
