SINGAPORE – A gambling website based overseas has been collecting illegal bets on FIFA World Cup matches from punters in Singapore who make transactions via PayNow with local firms.
GemBet, which is based in the Caribbean island of Curacao, has website addresses (URLs) for different countries including Singapore.
The Straits Times learnt that deposits for bets, and payouts for wins, are being funnelled through three local companies registered in 2026 – a manpower contracting service incorporated on March 3, a cleaning services company registered on April 29, and a wholesale trading firm incorporated on May 29.
Punters who access local URLs of GemBet are directed to its main website.
After registering, punters have to create a digital wallet where they place deposits using payment methods including cryptocurrencies and PayNow.
Those who opt for PayNow are directed to transfer money via one of the three Singapore companies.
The bets are taken out of the wallets.
Punters on GemBet are first made to deposit their funds in a wallet before placing bets. Selecting the PayNow option results in a Singapore-registered firm’s details being presented.
PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM GEMBET
Checks against Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority records show that the three companies are registered to Housing Board residential units.
ST visited the three units on July 15. At the address for the manpower company, a man said he did not recognise the name of the business owner. He said he had been living there for a decade.
At the cleaning services company address, an occupant said the 23-year-old business owner is his nephew. He said the young man is currently a full-time national serviceman.
No one responded at the address of the trading firm. A neighbour said she has rarely seen anyone entering or leaving the unit.
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