By David Richardson

09/22/2008

                No investment is a sure thing.  However, some investments are better than others especially those with a proven track record, for instance on the various poker tours.  That’s the thinking that some poker savvy traders in the London Stock Market have had and they are bringing their ideas to light.  With big money to be won and lost in poker is a poker pro a good investment?

                There are a number of people who seem to think so.  And the idea isn’t new or unheard of.  In the past poker players have used other’s cash to start and build a bankroll.  However, it’s not the first choice for many players.  Poker pros like to play with their own money and not be held accountable to someone else.

                But this is a new kind of sponsorship for poker players.  Manro Haydan, a privately owned trading company on the London stock exchange, is looking to make investing in poker players a new market.  Their idea is to have investors put up money for experienced poker players to use as stakes.  Return on the investment would come in the form of winnings at the poker table.

                Manro Hayden is using proven money management techniques to form their business model and like good poker players they are weighing the odds.  They are looking at the position of poker players as more of a trader role which would be the individual who is making the moves to generate positive cash flow.

                Manro wants to get enough initial funding to back 150 players.  But again they come back to the problem of good poker players wanting to have their own backing, not that of someone else.  So Manro Hayden is looking to the internet for help, which has made the venture possible in the first place because of better risk controls. 

Manro launched BadBeat to recruit players.  Strong players with a small bankroll can definitely take advantage of the deal Manro Hayden is offering.  Manro Hayden covers all the cost of getting in on a game as well as any losses incurred.  In exchange they get half of all the winnings. 

To be sure Manro Hayden is studying the numbers and obviously feel secure in investing in those to partake in online poker.  It’s another good sign of poker’s strength not only in online activity but also the world economy.  We’ll have to wait and see if it’s as good an investment as it is a pastime.