Is Rich Ricci, the ex-Barclays investment banker turned racehorse owner, poised to add a stake in a betting company to his stable of thoroughbreds?
Intriguing talk reaches Spy’s ears that Ricci, the (dartboard) pin-up of the financial crisis, is pumping cash into online betting company BetBright, with the sum of £7 million doing the rounds and chatter that Ricci might even become executive chairman.
BetBright — relatively new on the scene — is a trading name of Dublin-based Dedsert (Ireland), licensed to operate in the UK by the Gambling Commission.
So after the owner of Annie Power let us all down (the horse fell at the last when leading and saved the bookies millions) at Cheltenham in March, has Ricci found another way to take more of our cash?
The American refuses to comment.
The BetBright chaps in Dublin aren’t talkative either but management is “aware” of Spy’s enquiry, whatever that means.