American gambling giant DraftKings served as a member of Polygon Labs’ validator community. What the latter company did not disclose, though, is that the operator was not truly an “equal member” of the community.

As outlined in a report by CoinDesk, a crypto news outlet, Polygon had signed a deal that was incredibly lucrative to DraftKings. For reference, DraftKings became one of Polygon Labs’ validators in early 2022, marking the first time a big publicly traded firm has taken a role in blockchain governance.

CoinDesk reviewed dozens of on-chain records related to the company’s validator program to better understand the situation.

The reviewed data showed that Polygon provided DraftKings with millions of dollars of crypto back in 2021. While the news outlet could not confirm whether DraftKings had purchased these tokens, it added that the operator also earned millions through its special validator deal.

CoinDesk added that this deal provides a “rare window” into an arrangement that was not publicly disclosed.

Polygon Treated DraftKings Differently

As mentioned, DraftKings was not an equal member of Polygon’s validator community and was compensated much better than other members. Despite that, DraftKings’ validator eventually shut down.

As one of Polygon’s validators, DraftKings was supposed to lend computing power to its network and verify transactions on the platform. Validators a rewarded by automatically getting sent Polygon’s crypto token, MATIC, in a process known as staking.

Validators can stake MATIC tokens to earn more tokens. In the meantime, MATIC owners who do not have their own validators can delegate their tokens to others for a commission of 5%-10% of the rewards earned from those tokens.

However, DraftKings instead charged a 100% commission, depriving small delegators of MATIC tokens. In addition, the gambling company grew as one of Polygon’s largest validators. Needless to say, this deal was very unusual even within the Web3 sector.

CoinDesk learned that DraftKings’ validator benefitted from MATIC tokens delegated by Polygon and took a 100% commission on a very big tranche. Over the last year, DraftKings’ validator was staking 65.5 million MATIC tokens, 91% of which had been delegated to it by Polygon.

CoinDesk also discovered that DraftKings had staked the initial 2.5 million MATIC tokens it received from Polygon. The operator received these tokens in October 2021 and, soon after that, opened a Polygo-based NFT marketplace and agreed to run a validator. When DraftKings officially became a validator, it announced that it would stake “assets it holds in its treasury,” without specifying that it received those tokens from Polygon.

DraftKings Amassed Huge Rewards Thanks to the Treatment

As mentioned previously, the special treatment of DraftKings was not something Polygon disclosed and it actively contradicted its claim that DraftKings would be an equal member of the validator community.

By the end of the partnership, DraftKings had been delegated 60 million MATIC to help it earn more rewards. Prior to the validator’s fall from grace in October this year, DraftKings withdrew a total of 3.2 million MATIC, worth approximately $2 million and, thanks to Polygon’s special treatment, had amassed more in personal rewards than any other member of the validator community.

Evidently, DraftKings’ gain was another validator’s loss since the network issues only a finite number of MATIC tokens a year.

On November 7, the FTX scandal led to a wave of distrust in the crypto sector. Coincidentally, this date also marked the last time DraftKings staked its new MATIC rewards and opted to withdraw them from that point on.

In September, DraftKings’ validator began to underperform. After three notices, it was shut down for failing to meet its requirements. Polygon then moved its 60 million delegated MATIC tokens to a different validator with zero fees.

The post CoinDesk: Polygon Labs Gave Special Treatment to DraftKings’ Validator appeared first on Keno Wizard.

New South Wales (NSW) and Queensland regulators appointed special managers to oversee the company’s operations after the scandals surrounding its risk management failures and unethical behaviors. The beleaguered operator has recorded substantial progress in remedying its deficiencies but must still convince authorities it is ready to resume control.

Both Regions Expect Swift Progress

In ASX filings on Friday, Star disclosed the extension of Nicholas Weeks’ term as Manager of The Star Sydney by nearly six months, lasting until 30 June 2024. Similar to NSW, the position of the Special Manager for The Star Gold Coast and Treasury Brisbane casinos in Queensland has been extended by 12 months to 8 December 2024. 

These extensions aim to demonstrate that Star is capable of the necessary remedial actions to regain suitability and resume gaming activities as per its casino license provisions in NSW and Queensland. This change necessitates Star to demonstrate its adherence to the ongoing remediation plans and regain suitability by summer 2024.

Queensland’s decision to extend its special management follows a recent decision by Attorney General Yvette D’Ath to alter the effective date of a 90-day casino license suspension from 1 December 2023 to 31 May 2024. Meanwhile, the NSW Independent Casino Commission (NICC) clarified that its extension will likely mark the final continuation of the Manager’s term, with the option to conclude the tenure earlier if deemed appropriate.

The Operator Faces Growing Pressures

Star Entertainment managing director and CEO Robbie Cooke commented on the recent developments, expressing satisfaction with the Remediation Plan’s approval in Queensland. He stressed the need for unwavering commitment, accountability, and diligence to implement the measures successfully and prove that Star Entertainment can operate without additional supervision.

Despite the operator’s steady progress towards compliance, it faces substantial financial issues. Recent casino duty rate increases threaten to undermine the company’s long road to profitability as its FY 2022/23 results reported an unpleasant full-year loss of $1.6 million. However, all revenue-related policies must wait until the company regains regulatory compliance.

We need to regain the trust and confidence of all our stakeholders and communities and continue to have an unwavering focus on transformation.

Robbie Cooke, Star Entertainment managing director

While Star Entertainment has recorded steady progress with its remedial measures, many industry experts express skepticism about whether the operator can salvage its influence and reputation. Even if the company regains the trust of regulators, it must still struggle with mounting losses and macroeconomic pressures, meaning a return to profitability may take years.

The post NSW and Queensland Extend Star Entertainment’s Special Manager Terms appeared first on Keno Wizard.

Leading developer of multi-award-winning games certified and licensed in more than 20 global jurisdictions, Pragmatic Play, has announced the release of its freshest slot, 3 Buzzing Wilds. 

The studio has once again proven its interest to only “craft immersive experiences and responsible thrills” through the new 5×4 game that incorporates a large number of Wilds that generate higher wins and different types of game-altering effects. 

At the start of July, the provider released the rock’n’roll-themed slot Hellvis Wild, followed by Power of Merlin Megaways earlier in the month and Spellbinding Mystery Slot at the end of June. 

3 Buzzing Wilds Metrics Overview

• Reels: 5 
• Rows: 4
• RTP: 96.03%
• Hit frequency: –
• Max multiplier: x5,000 
• Max win: x5,000 
• Bet: min: $0.20, max: $100
• Volatility: High
• Release date: July 13, 2023

Join the Hive of Sweet Thrills in Paradise Garden

The action is set in what appears to be a garden paradise, filled with buzzing insects whose role is to help players create winning matching combinations across the 20 available paylines. Wins are created from left to right, on adjacent reels. 

Landing between three and five identical low-paying or high-paying symbols will trigger wins ranging between $0.50 and $100 for a standard bet of $2. Wild symbols that land on any location and contribute to a winning combination or improve it pay the same as the highest-paying symbol represented by the honey bee. 

The developer has also introduced three different types of Special Wild features that can be triggered randomly during the base game:

• Random Wilds, which work by awarding a random number of wilds at any given moment in time, on random grid positions
• Expanding Wilds, which work by expanding all wild symbols that are seen popping and filling their reels
• Surrounding Wilds, which work by spawning wild symbols located in all adjacent positions around landing wilds symbols

Free Spins Bonus Rounds 

To trigger the bonus round, players need to come across a minimum of three golden beehive scatter symbols. During the round, players are allowed to choose one of three available features inspired by the previously mentioned wild features. 

The first one is the Random Wilds Bonus Round which gives players 10 free spins while turning all added wild symbols from the random wilds feature into sticky symbols become for the remainder of the round.

During the Expanding Wilds Bonus Round, players receive eight free spins and see all wilds expanding, covering their reels, and turning into sticky symbols for the rest of the bonus round.

Finally, when the Surrounding Wilds Bonus Round is active, players get to enjoy six free spins and see all wild symbols from the surrounding wilds feature keep their positions frozen for the remainder of the round.
In mid-July, Pragmatic Play inked an important agreement with Finnish monopoly Veikkaus Oy, agreeing to fuel it with fresh games and help it bolster the experiences of its players.

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