Is Exchange Betting Coming to America Via Colorado?

About three (3) months ago, Novig secured a sports betting operator's license in Colorado. It took some time to get the company's ducks in order, but they have officially launched its traditional mobile sports betting platform in the Centennial State. Using Novig's platform, register Colorado online sports bettors will have access to dozens of sports betting markets daily. They will also be getting access to all of the usual betting options that are afforded U.S. sports bettors.

The term "traditional mobile sports betting platform" is key here. Why? It turns out that Novig has big plans beyond opening a traditional mobile sports betting platform. According to management, the company is very interested in introducing the state and country's first exchange betting mobile platform.

What is Exchange Betting?

When a traditional mobile sportsbook accepts bets, they are acting as the bookmaker, making it responsible for making lines and accepting bets. They operate by using the "vigorish" or betting commission to ensure they have very little to no vested interest on either side of any wager. They are simply booking the bet and hoping for balanced action.

Exchange betting is a completely different animal. In an exchange betting environment, it's the customers who get the opportunity to act as either bookmakers or bettors. It works as follows.

Any customer is permitted to create a betting opportunity. They can create the odds, post the betting opportunity, and hope another customer will accept the betting proposal. For the most part, customers who create betting opportunities will need to closely align their posted odds with what's put forth by traditional bookmakers. They can deviate if they wish, but they would often be doing so with a bit more risk. Of course, that's assuming traditional bookmakers will be better at creating odds than an exchange customer.

How do betting exchanges make money? They simply charge a very small commission on any winnings secured by a customer who creates and posts their own betting opportunity. No commission is charged if the bet creator loses. This works out very well for betting exchanges because they have ZERO risk.

What Novig is Planning in the Future

Novig's first goal was to make an entry into the U.S. sports betting community. They have successfully done that by launching a sports betting platform in Colorado. It's from this point moving forward that they hope to establish a reputation as a U.S. online bookmaker.

The company's CEO Jacob Fortinsky is well aware that the mountain the company has to climb to bring exchange betting to Colorado and the U.S. is a big mountain. It's going to take time to convince legislators that exchange betting comes with many benefits while creating very few logistical problems.

In a press release, Fortinsky stated:

“Novig is committed to delivering a seamless and cost-effective platform that enhances the enjoyment of sports betting. Using Novig really should be a no-brainer for sports bettors." He added, "We’re offering the same betting experience users are accustomed to, but better prices, faster in-game trading, more transparency, and a number of innovative features like liquidity screens, position tracking, and partial cash outs.”