Romanian operator Superbet paid out an incredible €30 million across multiple customers following a disastrous glitch on its casino.
Earlier this month players were able to take advantage of a ‘technical glitch’ and played a casino game called Fire Blaze Red Wizard by Playtech, which was reported to generate guaranteed returns on every spin for several hours.
Superbet confirmed the incident but did not disclosed what caused the malfunction. When the glitch was discovered, word quickly spread across player forums and more than 7,500 accounts played the game, raking in tens of millions of euros combined before the error was corrected.
The operator then froze player accounts, which created concern that payouts would be cancelled under the industry’s standard “malfunction voids all play” rules.
Despite that, in an unprecedented decision, Superbet unblocked all accounts and took it on the chin – telling customers all winnings would be honoured.
In a statement to players, the bookmaker wrote: “We are known as the betting and casino operator that pays out every win, regardless of the amount. As those who accept all bets and any stake on games. And we don’t want that to change.”
According to SBC, it is the largest technical payout recorded in European gambling. Superbet’s decision to pay out was driven by a need to protect brand trust and its image in Romania’s gambling market despite the cost of devastating financial damage.
Superbet was founded in 2008 by Romanian tech entrepreneur Sacha Drăgic and has since grown into one of the country’s leading technology firms and employers.
In a similar case earlier this year, the UK High Court ruled that Paddy Power must pay the full £1 million jackpot to a player who had been told the figure she saw on her screen was a display error.
Superbet was understandably keen to avoid a dispute in court and the price of reputational damage is usually hard to recover from.
Joe Lyons is a betting industry writer for GamblingIndustryNews with years of experience on reputable gambling websites. Joe specialises in long form content in the world of sports betting and gambling. Joe is recognised as an expert in sports fields such as horse racing, soccer, NFL and NBA.
