By the age of 13, Alex Wood was a virtuoso violinist, though he was later sentenced to seven years in prison for fraud. He is now a renowned expert on cybercrime, money laundering and illegal betting operators. Oh, and for good measure, he is a Fellow of the Society of Arts. Just the sort of chap you want in your corner.

Recently, as an experiment, he and I opened a black-market betting account together. I say ‘together’ because we used my identity and his credit card. The unlicensed bookmaker could not have been more helpful. They didn’t care how old we were, whether we had any addiction issues or the fact that our personal and financial details didn’t match. But their attitude soon changed when we struck a winning bet: they wouldn’t send us our winnings.

I mention this because the ramping up of taxes on bookmakers – which inevitably has a negative impact on how much they contribute to racing – and the obstructions the Gambling Commission continues to put in the path of punters who want to bet with regulated bookmakers, are driving the vulnerable into the hands of the fraudulent.

The vast majority of punters will find a black-market bookmaker via their phones who won’t ask difficult questions

The vast majority of punters will find a black-market bookmaker via their phones who won’t ask........

© The Spectator