[July 03, 2007] BETBROKERS LOOKS TO SAPPHIRE GROUP FOR DEVELOPMENT AND SUPPORT OF TRADING PLATFORM Tweet New contract renews and extends existing arrangements between Betbrokers and Sapphire Group 3 July 2007, London. Betbrokers, (AIM: BETB), the world's first independent betting brokerage, has signed up Sapphire Group to support its business management processes jointly from Romford and St. Petersburg. Following the recent completion of the successful implementation of BrokerBet2 - a front office trading platform and middle and back office support structure - Betbrokers has selected Sapphire Group to provide continuing support and development using its proven onshore offshore methodology. The trading platform includes a number of position-keeping facilities which will allow brokers to constantly monitor client accounts and is anticipated to support the Company’s plans for internet and mobile services, scheduled to be available in early 2008. Due to compliance regulations, Betbrokers, based in Canary Wharf, required an effective management information system to support both the retail and wholesale sports betting sectors with brokerage, settlement, risk management, clearing house services as well data and analysis tools. Sapphire Group responded to the brief by developing a business management solution based on a business model used by the financial markets, as Betbrokers also provides wholesale clients, including bookmakers, betting exchanges and corporates with a risk management service to allow them to confidentially square their books - by placing certain bets to lay off their risk or hedge against bets already taken. Carl Whitehead, IT Director, Betbrokers, said that Sapphire Group offered a complete business management solution to meet all the requirements of the growing brokerage. The nine month implementation was managed by Sapphire’s project team in Romford, while development and support stems from St. Petersburg. The development work was managed by UK Projects’ Manager Chris Gadsby and carried out by five key Russian developers, who operated both from the UK and also remotely from Russia. The project had three phases involving the implementation of a sophisticated office and web based .NET/Oracle (News - Alert) solution to enable the placing of bets, matching back and lay bets with price comparisons across bookmakers and betting exchanges. While Betbrokers is delighted with the outcome, they mitigated the risk of using outsourced Russian development by ensuring that day to day project management was handled in the UK, the key development team leaders made on site visits to Betbrokers and ensuring there was the facility for constant, direct, communication between Bertbrokers and the offshore team. “Costs have already been reduced and quality boosted through working with Sapphire Group and we look forward to both these trends continuing and accelerating under the new arrangements,” added Carl Whitehead. Chris Gadsby said: ‘We have been in the UK for 25 years and have built up a loyal customer base. We wanted to provide a better service to all our clients and that’s why we believe that our business model of onshore management and offshore development will continue to bring significant benefits to companies looking for bespoke IT systems that are developed on time and on budget.” Next BetBrokers will be looking into Sapphire Group’s Matchlogon with FingerPIN, an authentication management solution that uses the world’s first sequential biometric fingerprinting technology. - END - About Betbrokers Betbrokers plc, (AIM: BETB), the UK’s first retail and wholesale brokerage and clearing house for the sports betting industry. Betbrokers is the world's first independent betting brokerage. The company was launched in 2003 and provides a custom telephone brokerage, settlement, risk management and clearing house service for both retail and wholesale clients. The firm has accounts with the major bookmakers and exchanges, and operates a telephone intermediary brokerage service from its Canary Wharf dealing room, offering clients access to the entire market. An emphasis on responsible gambling and the capability to offer sophisticated hedging techniques is garnering Betbrokers a growing reputation in the UK marketplace. The website address is www.betbrokers.com About Sapphire Group Sapphire Group, www.sapphiregroup.com, is an Anglo-American privately owned group with offices in UK, USA and partners throughout Europe. All Sapphire’s technical staff are highly qualified and committed to customer satisfaction and quality of work. Sapphire Group has over 25 years experience in providing software based solutions including hundreds of conversions of legacy DOS systems varying in size and complexity up to multi million dollar projects. For further press information, contact: Sapphire Group Ranbir Sahota Vitis PR, 0870 8965448, [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]