[JoshW]

10.16.2006 (09:59 AM CST)
Mansion (SBR rating B-) closes its sportsbook and casino to players residing in the US. Mansion’s most popular offering is its low-margin sports exchange betting platform, which will remain open for all clients. However, management tells SBR that they will no longer employ market makers to seed the exchange and there may be a substantial decline in wagering activity. The company aims to offer true peer-to-peer trading. SBR has downgraded Mansion to B- due to customer service issues, reduced offerings and complaints of canceled wagers without alerting players through email.

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Without them seeding the market totally useless for US players and the book side is already questionable in usefulness for non-US market. Pretty much the end for them in terms of offer. Also makes it clear they won't be buying any book to try to take advantage of the situation.

[Santo]

Still looks like they're seeding NCAAF.. 2k a side at -107..

I did note that their soccer limits were higher at the weekend than they have been in the past.. And are set at 2k for tonight, 20k+ for next week

[bigloser]

I have long suspected that the money on the exchange is not from indepedant individuals. You might find that liquidity improves there. It may be this is just a way round the regulations.

[slash]

I have long suspected that the money on the exchange is not from indepedant individuals. You might find that liquidity improves there. It may be this is just a way round the regulations.

Really???? And all this time I thought that it was people like you and me who made the exact same offers at every line in every sport every day... What a shocker!!

[isetcap]

All the books have had it bad the last 3 months.

Mansion has had it real bad, though. What a disaster...

[slash]

They have also closed the sportsbook for Europeans. At least there are no lines up, and the casino is "closed for maintenance".

[Dark Horse]

"In my Father's house are many mansions..."

There's a passage I got memorized.
Ezekiel 25:17. "The path of the
righteous man is beset on all sides
by the inequities of the selfish
and the tyranny of evil men.
Blessed is he who, in the name of
charity and good will, shepherds
the weak through the valley of the
darkness. For he is truly his
brother's keeper and the finder of
lost children.
And I will strike down upon thee
with great vengeance and furious
anger those who attempt to poison
and destroy my brothers. And you
will know I am the Lord when I lay
my vengeance upon you." I been
sayin' that sh*t for years. And if
you ever heard it, it meant your
ass. I never really questioned
what it meant. I thought it was
just a cold-blooded thing to say to
a motherf*cker 'fore you popped a
cap in his ass. But I saw some
sh*t this mornin' made me think
twice. Now I'm thinkin', it could
mean you're the evil man. And I'm
the righteous man. And Mr. .45
here, he's the shepherd protecting
my righteous ass in the valley of
darkness. Or is could by you're
the righteous man and I'm the
shepherd and it's the world that's
evil and selfish. I'd like that.
But that sh*t ain't the truth. The
truth is you're the weak. And I'm
the tyranny of evil men. But I'm
tryin'. I'm tryin' real hard to be
a shepherd.

[Halifax]

and complaints of canceled wagers without alerting players through email.

What's the scoop on the cancelled wagers ? I don't recall hearing about that issue.

[isetcap]

What's the scoop on the cancelled wagers ? I don't recall hearing about that issue.

It's OK. It's really no problem. Just act like it never happened...

[jjgold]

Everyone is folding up, this is getting scary

I told you these books know way more than we do about this law.

No way they would close unless they feared getting arrested.

[isetcap]

All the gamblers are gone...lawyers are running the industry now.

[kiwi]

That's really bad news. If they stop to seed the markets there will be not at all enough liquidity anymore. I wonder what will be the future of Mansion then?

[SBR_John]

This really is tough medicine. I was not an exchange guy but so many people had grown to love this exchange. Pinnacle has to be secretly loving this.

[tacomax]

What's the scoop on the cancelled wagers ? I don't recall hearing about that issue.

They never happened. Despite the complaints by the customers and admittance on the side of Mansion that the bets were been cancelled they didn't happen. Because Slash said that they didn't. And if he says they didn't happen then they must not have happened.

[Sam Odom]

It was easy to not register a final wager w/Mansion Ex.

Had to click at least 3x

[marc]

mansion was great for baseball. Hopefully by April they will reconsider finding market makers for their exchange. But mansion is mostly useless for football. Who needs mansions -107 lines when you can get -105 at pinn, cascade, and trojan. And pinn is lay -104 in NFL spreads.

I won't miss mansion until april. As a peer to peer exchange it's still much better than opther like matchbook. The commissions are like nothing.

[RickySteve]

If running a betting exchange was perfectly kosher, why has Betfair not allowed US clients for years?

Even if there were some loophole making exchanges legal and sportsbooks illegal (in theory they operate in exactly the same manner), how would the US government be able to discern where the offers are coming from? Is the Dept. of Justice going to be able to subpoena records and witnesses from Hong Kong or wherever the hell Mansion is located?

Lastly, there is a very simple solution for every private book regarding US policy. Locate in a country with no extradition treaty and stay the fuuck out of the USA! I think forfeiting your right to experience the Epcot Center and eat corndogs in exchange for being able to practically print money with your online casino is a fair trade, but that's just me.

[pags11]

I really think the promotions backfired on these guys...no rollover requirements...they thought it would lead to customer loyalty...it didn't...the Steelers hit...most people took the money and got the hell out of there...was the beginning of the end for me (that and them going to -107 for football instead of keeping -104)...too bad really...and they need to fix their software...

[jjgold]

Mansion will not be missed by most. It was more of a sharps type book and they make up a very small portion of the players betting sports.

[kiwi]

Does anybody have any information if players funds are at risk in Mansion now? I hope they don't destroy my good month by disappearing with my money...

[Bill Dozer]

Does anybody have any information if players funds are at risk in Mansion now? I hope they don't destroy my good month by disappearing with my money...

I know a few players have 6 figure balances there and aren't having any issues with drawing them down and Mansion is probably seeing a mass exodus.

[Halifax]

I know a few players have 6 figure balances there and aren't having any issues with drawing them down and Mansion is probably seeing a mass exodus.

I doubt there's a mass exodus at the moment, since they're still seeding the exchange.

Once they stop seeding the exchange (if they stop), it will be a different story.

[Halifax]

They never happened. Despite the complaints by the customers and admittance on the side of Mansion that the bets were been cancelled they didn't happen. Because Slash said that they didn't. And if he says they didn't happen then they must not have happened.

I already know the story about the "disappearing" wagers ... but from the sounds of the SBR story ... "complaints of canceled wagers without alerting players through email ... it sounded like they were referring to a different situation, where Mansion knowingly cancelled bets (for being bad lines, or soemthing to that effect) and never notified players ... the "disappearing" bets thing sounded more like a software flaw, than a book purposely cancelling bets.

[Doug]

NHL lines aren't very good, now.

[tacomax]

the "disappearing" bets thing sounded more like a software flaw, than a book purposely cancelling bets.

But it didn't happen. Slash said so.

[slash]

But it didn't happen. Slash said so.

You are learning Taco, good work son.

My conclusion on the disappearing wagers is that the complaints came from Americans, and as we all know, Americans in general are stupid, so it's probably due to this stupidity and the unability to understand how an exchange works that the complaints arose. That Mansion acknowledged that some wagers were missing only shows how much they care for their customers - stupid or not.

[pags11]

they may care for their customers, but they aren't very organized at the moment...