January 1, 2025, marked a watershed moment for Brazil’s betting industry. After years of operating in a grey market dominated by offshore operators and loosely regulated local outfits, the country now has a clear regulatory framework which has a zero-tolerance approach to unlicensed betting. Far from a routine policy update, Brazil is poised to become one of the largest regulated betting economies, with revenues forecast to reach $6.3 billion by 2038.
Kalshi's groundbreaking regulatory approval has positioned it as the first legal event contract exchange in the U.S., allowing nationwide betting while bypassing state restrictions. With backing from Charles Schwab and Susquehanna, it's poised to reshape the wagering landscape across elections, sports, and beyond.
Over the 12 months to 31 December 2024, the Waterhouse VC Fund delivered a gross return of 28%, reaffirming the strength of our multi-strategy approach. As our portfolio companies succeed and our investor base expands, the volume and quality of opportunities continue to rise. With stronger deal flow and deeper industry insights, we are increasingly the partner of choice for founders in the wagering sector.
Nigel Eccles has long been at the forefront of innovation in the wagering sector. His betting journey began in 2000 and exchanges would be the early focus of his career. After a period away from the industry, Eccles would setup FanDuel in 2009, revolutionising fantasy sports before its $4.2B acquisition by Flutter. Eccles stepped away from FanDuel in 2017 to return to early-stage startups, and has since co-founded five businesses. Today, he is driving the convergence of wagering and crypto through ventures like BetDEX and BetHog.
As the dust settles on the U.S. election, prediction markets have captured attention far beyond traditional wagering circles. Polymarket handled over $3.6 billion on wagers on the election outcome, accurately predicting not only the President but also the results in every swing state. Historically, many exchanges have struggled to sustain activity beyond major headline events, limiting their capacity to provide consistently actionable insights. Today, a new wave of platforms are looking to overcome these challenges.
The Waterhouse VC Fund’s investment in Playtech has come to a bittersweet end, with a takeover offer from Aristocrat Leisure pending shareholder approval. We were excited to be shareholders as they executed on their opportunities for growth in the US, but the fund will now crystallise a gain of 190% on the investment.
Personality based marketing is something we are familiar with at TomWaterhouse.com. It's much easier to love, or hate, a real person rather than a faceless corporation. This strategy has been similarly employed by Dave Portnoy, “El Presidente” of Barstool Sports to grow a huge audience. Now, after being acquired by Penn National Gaming, Barstool is converting these fans into online betting customers and revenue very successfully.
Speaking exclusively to SBC News, Waterhouse discussed his extensive experience within the wagering and gaming industry, before highlighting ways in which Waterhouse VC is helping businesses ‘dominate their niche’ and explaining why he’s most excited about the continued growth of the US market and the emergence of gambling in the Metaverse.
We believe Flutter Entertainment is the highest quality global wagering operator, with a compelling valuation and long runway for international growth. Their U.S. brand FanDuel has strengthened market share, which is critical in an industry where marketing costs and taxes will put pressure on the smaller operators.
