Whatever happened to the move to Panama?

[waw]

Remember a while back, and everyone was talking about moving to Panama (about the same time as BetPanAm moved there and opened shop)?

Then it all went very quiet. Infact, no one I've been talking to down here in CR is mentioning it anymore. These things are always a big deal at the time, but then nothing happens (like the crack down that was supposed to happen last October).

Anyone know if anything changed, or if Panama did not deliver on the promises it made publicly? Or, did everyone look at going and then realised it could be a monumental waste of time and money and would deliver no additional security?

 

[-Slim-]

every year its the same thing, every year the same thing happens. its all bs, anyone leaving a country with so many advantages over a tax they can cover with about 1/12 of a days winnings has to be nuts.

 

[waw]

You're probably right, Slim. Thanks.

I suppose it is the same as the software company shills coming on here and bitching about each other just after march madness each year - then going away at the start of the new season.

How depressing.

 

[American]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by waw:

Anyone know if anything changed, or if Panama did not deliver on the promises it made publicly? Or, did everyone look at going and then realised it could be a monumental waste of time and money and would deliver no additional security?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I think it's all of the above. You may have hit the nail on the head. Whether it's Panama, CR, DR, or Nicaragua, it's still the same culture, same story.

 

[Tarheel_in_cr]

like slim sayed...EVERY YEAR the same thing happens, it's all bla-bla-bla but they always stay.

i remember two years ago it was Belize, last year was Panama...lets see who's next.

 

[da1ghost]

Guys, don't mean to be opposing you just want to offer my opinion.

Every year, some new political agenda takes place. For example here in CR...they started charging for a lisence to operate a sportsbook, but it's not a real lisence because they haven't made it legal yet. To make it legal it is a long process I guess, where they have to write articles so that all other areas of the government can refer to them such as municipalities. So for now, you pay 25k for a peice of paper, and if you don't pay they come knocking on your door.

Since this happened, many people felt uncomfortable, because it is to them, just a shakedown. Furthermore, banking became more difficult. Banks were closing down accounts, making it difficult for operators to even pay their clerks and bills. From what I understand, the banks in the US that are corresponding to the various banks here, were putting pressure on them asking them to be tight and strict with their clients. The banking laws that were passed last year and this year in the US ("Terrorist Laws") really concentrate on the "know your customer clause".

So the way some operators saw it at that moment, was that the US is taking over and CR is shaking down these businesses for as much as they can. I don't blame them, but c'mon...it's not so simple.

So now these operators, feeling uncomfortable, hear of another haven....doesn't mean it is any better, but to them at the moment it is.

Speaking to various operators who have taken a trip over there, these are the remarks I got:

"It's a real city, with real restaurants" I guess TGIF, OUTBACK and ROMAS are all fake.

"You only have to pay clerks $400 a month, and they have an excellent work attitude" OK, they save some money...and don't have to deal with much crap....but are all Panamanian people like that...or just who he met?

"The bandwidth is dependabe and cheap" I agree with that one, as Cable and Wireless was the main provider there.

"There is much more to do in Panama" I can understand that, but how much time do you have to spend having fun?

"You can use the American Dollar everywhere" SO? Can't you do that here?

All in all, I think that people talk about moving because they feel unsecure in a location sometimes....but after putting thought and effort into it they realize that it costs money to move, and what is a haven today may not be a haven tomorrow....so stick it out until it is necessary to move.

Ghost Out!

P.S. Belize was done for people out of Margarita....due to some asshole who caused a ruckus with the local government resulting in the National Guard coming into the offices there and shutting them down, while holding their huge guns. If that happens anywhere it is a valid reason to move into even the middle of the jungle!

 

[waw]

Good and interesting post Ghost!

 

[WalkofLife]

One word: Propaganda.

How would you attack books that are doing all the right things to become more competitive in this industry? How would you try to undermine the confidence that customers have deposited in these books? How would you try to come ahead of these fine books, if you had no real issues to citicize them?

Well, I would start off by finding a factor they all have in common. In this case that factor was LOCATION.

People seem to think it's the Wild West down in C.R.... and they're right. But in this business as in any other, location will never determine the ethics of the people that own a company. That statement is ridiculous.

So they had to hype Panama, because BetPanAm was opening its doors. Nothing against BetPanAm, as I believe they're a fine book... but all this smearing campaigns are frankly sickening. 1 year after, we can see the results.

BetPanAm is run by people with a lot of knowledge of the biz, but if they're to become part of the Big Boyz, they will have to do it on other merits, other than just being located in Panama.

For the record, the ethics of work down here in C.R. can make you sick, if you're used to efficiency... but they have become better, ever since the books have been down here.

 

[darwinmobley]

nice read Ghost. Thanks alot. I'm sure this will clear up some of the bs and controversy until next march madness.

till then we'll just wait and see.

 

[da1ghost]

Walk, I beleive what I said but also think that books that opened in Panama used this whole issue to their advantage just like any good business person would.

The people who want to avoid the gaming lisence and extra municipality taxes are just moving into large homes or warehouses located outside of the known sportsbook areas. It's a hell of a lot better than starting up with new employees in a new country!

BTW DR is the next place to be, watch and see over the next couple of years.

 

[zzzzzz]

i remember when 2 years ago there was a bunch of yapping going on here in CR belize had an ad in the paper that said something to the effect of 'having trouble in CR....come to belize yada yada'

all these countries are the same except CR is probaly the one with the highest quality of life

 

[da1ghost]

Whoa! Belize is nothing like CR or Panama. There is one guy, who is hooked up in the government...who also owns the bank, that wanted to develop and office park for offshore businesses. It kinda backfired because he was too greedy, wanted to supply his own bandwidth and nothing worked. Besides that, there is nothing in Belize, the area of the country where the offices are located. Except the fed pen....it's just down the street.

So after all this happened and Godfrey had an office park sitting empty, he put that ad in th paper. Belize can not be compared to plce that has any infrastructure at all.

 

[WildBill]

I think we all must remember most books don't have the resources to just pick up and leave like that, they don't have the strong management base and employee base it will take to make the book work elsewhere. Panama isn't offering any real financial incentives to do it, just saying licensing and a couple dollars less pay to clerks isn't going to make anyone's returns improve. Also no book is going to move anytime near football season so if there are more movers they will become known in the next few months.

I suspect there will be some more movement there within 18 months. A few might go before football and still more next year, but it won't be much of a flood of books. What keeps people in CR is the fact that most books aren't in a position to take advantage of the move, so few get enough action to justify better bandwith or regulatory worries. The biggest books have too much invested in CR to just easily pick up and leave. Still I think a few will take a shot at it.