Photo courtesy of Play Among Friends Paf on Flickr

In the battleground that is Australian online betting, Ladbrokes has made a major move by purchasing Betstar for 12.4 million pounds.

This marks the second foray into Australia for the company, which bought online company Bookmaker.com.au and launched a website in Australia last September. Ladbrokes is Britain’s second-biggest bookmaker.

Rival European bookmakers including Paddy Power and William Hill have also been expanding in Australia.

Betstar has around 40,000 registered customers and generated earnings of A$12.9 million in the year to March.

“Australia represents one of the most vibrant regulated sports betting markets in the world and today’s announcement will see us add new customers to our growing presence,” said Damian Cope, managing director of Ladbrokes’ international arm.

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