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What was the highlight of 2007 for the company and why?
In 2007 there are a couple of events that stick in the memory. The first was the start of the Cheltenham Festival in March. Throughout the week we broke records, saw record turnover and commission as well as special innovative promotions for new and old members alike. At WBX we always try and offer promotions around big events for members. Its just one of the incentives we offer our members to bet with us. The second was the WBX.com Fighting Fifth Hurdle on December 1 at Newcastle Racecourse. This marked our first birthday and we saw some of the best hurdlers in Britain and Ireland line up. We had a fantastic race with a great winner in Harchibald. Since the introduction of the £1 million bonus for the winner of the Fighting Fifth, Christmas and Champion Hurdles we have been rewarded with plenty of coverage across Britain and Ireland.
What has been the worst moment of 2007 for the company and why?
The worst moment was probably the end of a dream with the defeat of Harchibald in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day. I am desperate to pay £1 million out for the winner of the bonus and Harchibald was beaten by the shortest of short heads. Our bonus would see £100,000 going to the stable lad responsible for looking after him and Im sure he would have appreciated the bonus as this is a part of the sport which is often forgotten. The other downside of 2007 was the awful weather we endured during the summer. A time where we normally have five race meetings a day was replaced by postponements and conditions normally associated with the National Hunt game.
Who is on top at WBX—is it the backers or the layers?
The layers are on top against the backers in the battle of lay or play on WBX. On figures of just over £200 million the layers are 1.5 percent up over the backers.
What sets WBX apart from other betting exchanges? In your opinion why is it one of the best?
The main benefit to our members is our loyalty discount scheme. This is a scheme where commission payments are refunded to members as they make their way down the loyalty discount scheme. This is open to all members from the very start of their trading with WBX and is something that our members have responded very favourably to. Also, we employ some of the countries most renowned tipsters and racing journalists to offer their insight to members. We have had a lot of successful tips including a 28/1 winner that was matched at over 40 on WBX and only last Friday a horse at 10/1 that was matched at over 14/1. I have also spent a lot of time and effort ensuring our Member Services team is the best in the industry. We’ve heard a lot of comments about other companies Member Services teams and this is something we’ve tried to improve on—and judging by the feedback from our members we’ve got it right.
How many staff does the company employ and where?
We are based in Covent Garden, London—a location we are very happy and proud of. In our head office we employ nearly 50 people. To ensure constant protection we rely upon world-renowned IT specialists Ultima Business Solutions to continually manage and monitor our betting technology.
What do you have planned for 2008? What sort of year is it going to be?
2008 will be a big year for WBX. We have always wanted to open our site up to foreign languages and markets. We are currently looking at developing foreign language sites, which will see the site opened up to far more users. Also, we will continue the introduction of new markets on the site. We always respond to our members’ queries and requests and when people request new markets we are happy to help if demand is out there. With the Euro 2008 Championships taking place in the summer we are hoping to attract more people from throughout Europe to our football markets. It is just a shame that none of the home nations qualified.
Malcolm Gray, CEO, WBX
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