Kiwi punters will be able to get on to win at least $5000 on a Saturday New Zealand thoroughbred race under new minimum bet laws (MBLs) announced by Entain.
The MBLs will provide punters with some comfort following the New Zealand government’s decision to allow the Entain-run New Zealand TAB with a virtual monopoly, a piece of legislation which triggered a NZ$100 million payment from the international wagering giant.
Under the voluntary betting limits, Kiwi punters will also be able to win at least $2000 on non-Saturday New Zealand races and $5000 on Friday night harness racing and big feature races on other days of the week.
Voluntary MBLs are also in place for Australian racing, with $2000 MBLs on metropolitan thoroughbred meetings, $1000 on harness racing and the remainder of Australian thoroughbreds, and $500 on Australian greyhound racing.
“There's nothing more exciting than placing a long-range bet on a horse to win one of NZ's racing carnivals feature races, and now thoroughbred and racing futures markets are included in TAB's Punters Promise with a $2000 MBL in place as soon as the market is open,” Entain Australia and New Zealand’s general manager of trading Nick Conway said.
Sports punters are also catered for, with NZ TAB and its online brand Betcha letting punters win at least $1000 on a range of popular codes including soccer, basketball, rugby union, rugby league and a suite of other markets.
MBLs for certain sports such as UFC will only apply to Betcha account holders, Conway said.
“The sports, tournaments and markets we have chosen for the punters promise and betcha guarantee cover 75 percent of our sports turnover, so we'll have our work cut out for us making sure the odds are as accurate as possible,” Conway said.
“We recognise and appreciate the privilege of being the exclusive betting operator for New Zealand.
“These new and expanded initiatives - alongside our pledge to provide the same fair odds in New Zealand that we have on our brands in the highly competitive Australian betting market - shows our commitment to striking a fair balance between the punter and the operator.”
The MBLs come into effect on Thursday.
