Although the majority of products and services offered by companies worldwide are of a cyclical nature however, there are a few consumer industries that offer investment opportunity no matter what business cycle the economy is in. One such industry is gambling. Irrespective of the economic condition there will always be a crowd in a casino or a betting hall. In order to diversify a portfolio, gambling is among the most interesting sectors to be invested in. The industry itself has a strong lobby which would not allow it to slide. You do not need to apply for a gaming license or invest in a casino in order to make an investment in this industry. The bond market and the stock markets provide various options for gaining exposure to the gaming industry.

Before venturing into investing first, it is important to know some basic facts about the business. Gaming involves a host of betting options, such as betting on races and sports events casinos, poker as well as slot machine. They could be of two types: American-styled gambling that is modeled after destination based gambling and European-styled gaming that includes retail betting shops. Since the introduction of the internet, a third type of gaming company has been created that concentrate on online gaming. This involves both the suppliers of operating platforms and software and host gambling companies which offer gaming products to players on the internet.

Historically, all forms of gambling were considered illegal. Numerous illegal operators operated on regional level due to existence of a high demand for the industry. This led to a shift in the perception of gambling activities and the governments of all countries have legitimized gambling, defining it as an activity for leisure or recreation. This led to the development of casinos (mainly in the US) and betting shops (in Europe). With the changing times, new products were added such as slot machines, off-course betting, phone betting, and eventually betting on the internet. While the majority of countries that allow gambling have no laws regarding betting on online casinos, European countries have been the first to introduce this type of gambling. In 2000s, UK followed by Italy and Spain legalised online gaming, giving way for new kind of players in the market.

While highly regulated Both land-based as betflik well as online gambling have transformed into lucrative businesses. Investors will to enter gaming sector could invest in companies that have shares listed in stock exchanges for instance William Hill. Furthermore, some of the gaming companies have outstanding bonds, giving good opportunities for fixed income investors to be exposed to the gaming industry. However, the sector is heavily regulated, is subject to technological advancements and has high operational gearing. Investors are advised to engage financial advisors who are capable of identifying the risks associated with the bond and match it to the risk appetite of clients and make recommendations for investments.