It has been reported that online exchange wagering giant Betfair will be moving to operate under a Gibraltar licence, and thus will be able to avoid the United Kingdom's 15 per cent tax on gross betting profits. Although, the company stated it will still pay the British horse racing levy despite moving its licensing abroad.

The news comes via an article on guardian.co.uk, which quotes a statement from Betfair's interim management as saying, "Betfair will continue to support British horse racing by committing the same amount of money to the sport that the company has been paying via the statutory levy for the remainder of the 49th Levy Scheme and on the terms set out for the 50th Levy Scheme."

The report states that Betfair's UK staff of 1,200 will not move to Gibraltar. The shift from operating under a UK licence to a Gibraltar licence is expected to save the company roughly £18.5m a year in tax.

(With files from guardian.co.uk)