MaximBet, the sports betting platform owned by the Carousel Group – and in partnership with Maxim magazine – has decided to shut down amid "macro-economic conditions," becoming the latest US sportsbook to close.
The company released a statement: "Our ability as an early-stage company to compete in a market where operating costs far exceed revenue, even among the top operators, is not sustainable.
"Our priority now, in consultation with state regulators, is to wind down operations and help active customers in Colorado and Indiana withdraw their funds and close their accounts."
The company announced a new tech stack in January but the release was delayed until September. The company then looked to raise money, causing an investor deck to detail the company's first six months in operation.
The report revealed that MaximBet had $18.7m in real money handle with marketing spend of $3.7m, more than double the gross gaming revenue.
MaximBet isn't the only sportsbook that recently announced it would be closing its doors. Last month, FuboTV said it would be scrapping its Fubo Gaming division after less than 12 months of operation.
Bettor Capital Managing Partner Dave VanEgmond said: "The high regulatory cost to entry (including $10M or $25M license fees plus royalty or market access fees to casinos in certain states) make building a scaled sports betting business operating in most legal states difficult and expensive.
"You need hundreds of millions, if not a billion dollars, to aggressively compete to be a major player with more than a few percent of market share in sports betting.
"With the capital markets tightening, smaller companies and startups aren’t able to raise the necessary capital to compete, and I’d expect to see more exits or sales amongst smaller operators who don’t have access to capital to keep investing in the US market opportunity."
MaximBet first launched in 2021 and customers can withdraw their funds up until December 15 2022.
