PokerStars has indicated that the island will ’remain a very firm part of their operations’ says Enterprise Minister Laurence Skelly.

The Rushen MHK told Business News that the company has ’gone through various mergers and acquisitions' but they still have a ’very significant presence in the Isle of Man’.

And he says the Department for Enterprise has continued to hold regular meetings with PokerStars which is the world’s largest online poker company.

PokerStars is based at King Edward Road, Onchan, and around a year ago The Stars Group announced a downsizing of its Isle of Man PokerStars team saying the division had faced significant headwinds in international markets.

A total of 80 employees on the island were thought to be affected, although redundancies would be staggered over a number of months.

Since then, through its parent company, The Stars Group, it has been involved in a ’mega-merger’ with Paddy Power owners Flutter Entertainment.

And during the lockdown it was found many people had apparently turned to online poker. Talking about the growth of e-gaming over nearly 20 years Mr Skelly referred to PokerStars ’who arrived with only a handful of staff a number of years ago and now employ several hundred’.

He added that it had been indicated ’in our most recent discussion a good month ago’ that the Isle of Man would ’remain a very firm part of their operations. This is very encouraging’.

Mr Skelly added that ’we have regular ongoing talks and regular contact’.

He continued: ’We have seen steady growth there (at PokerStars). There was some restructuring and there were some jobs at risk but the overall net gain over two or possibly three years, is really quite significant.

’We are always concerned when jobs are at risk but when you look at the aggregate gain it really is quite strong.’

He said the e-gaming industry is ’one of our linchpin industries and has been for a number of years. We are getting on for two decades of an industry that is well established, well regulated and respected. The Isle of Man is a jurisdiction of choice and quality.’

Lyle Wraxall, chief executive of the Digital Isle of Man executive agency confirmed also that there are regular meetings with PokerStars.

He said: ’We do expect them to stay here.’

He added there were always ’rumours’ in the island about the company’s future here.

PokerStars’ long-time communications chief Eric Hollreiser left last year to form a marketing communications consultancy to serve regulatory entrepreneurs.

He told Business News at the time that PokerStars has been and remains a ’super-important’ business for the island.

But he also said it was vital that the island continues to rise to the challenges faced in remaining a progressive jurisdiction for the e-gaming industry as it moves forward.

Mr Hollreiser stressed it was the island’s responsibility to ensure that there is the ’’next PokerStars’’, ’’the next Microgaming’’ in the same way as the ’’next big bank’’ and to always look to the future.