Updated at 12.15pm with Farina's reaction

The Malta Gaming Authority has suspended the licence of Fgura-based Vodoo, but has refrained from giving any details behind its decision.

“The authority notifies that no further information shall be released at this stage in order not to compromise any investigations that may need to be performed by the authority and/or any other competent authority,” it said.

It subsequently replied to question from Times of Malta that the suspension was for "various regulatory breaches".

The authority instructed Vodoo to indefinitely suspend all gaming operations, cease to register new players, suspend all transactions on all websites, including deposits and withdrawals, and submit all data and documentation requested by the authority.

Vodoo is owned by Fabrizio Farina, an Italian with a registered address in Messina. The shareholding was transferred to Grapes Holdings in June 2015, which is fully owned by Mr Farina. The company has two directors: Mr Farina and Marie Antoinette Schembri.

It has an authorised share capital of €100,000 and an issued share capital of €100,000.

Until last year, the betting company operated from the IdeaCasa building in Valley Road.

Farina's reaction: 

Mr Farina told the Times of Malta that the company had had to move its account a few months ago after the bank closed it down. This prompted some questions from the Malta Gaming Authority a few weeks ago, he said. 

However, he had to travel for a family crisis and failed to reply to an e-mail from the authority two weeks ago, he admitted. 

"I know I should not have ignored it for two weeks but I really had other important things on my mind. But given that this was not some serious infringement like money-laundering or something, I think that the authority's reaction is a bit excessive. I am still aboard but I will be seeking legal advice," he said.

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