According to a press release on Monday, Optimal Payments will launch an all-new Neteller in the United States in coordination with a “federally-insured US financial institution sponsor.” Optimal is specifically bringing the Net+ Card and the Neteller online payment processing service to the US, a country it vacated in 2007 following the arrest of the company’s founders.

Skrill is already available in the United States and Optimal Payments was approved to be a payment processor in New Jersey last October. According to NJ.com, “It’s unclear at this time if Optimal Payments has entered into specific agreements with US online gambling sites to use Neteller and the Net+ Card for online gaming transactions or if the details are still being hashed out.”

Joel Leonoff, President and CEO of Optimal Payments, commented in the press release, “The Neteller service and Net+ Card being launched in the US are brand new services that have been developed to meet the unique needs of the US marketplace. With our US financial institution sponsor, we are leveraging Neteller’s flexible deposit and payment options and with our expertise, resources, and management are offering something truly unique in the US.”

NJ.com reminded readers that Neteller already works with bwin.party (which provides software for PartyPokerand Borgata Pokerin New Jersey) in countries outside of the US, as well as 888 Holdings, which powers WSOP.comand 888 Poker in New Jersey. Therefore, Optimal already has relationships in place with some of the largest US online gaming providers and currently processes payments in Nevada and New Jersey, according to Gaming Intelligence.

Neteller was a monolith before it left the US market. As NJ.com outlined, “Before they left the US market… the company was processing roughly 80% of all online gambling transactions in the world.” Neteller officially withdrew in early 2007 and money was frozen in players’ accounts for the next seven months. Eventually, the company returned nearly $100 million to US customers and settled with the US Government for $136 million.

Optimal Payment’s shareholders could also come out winners. According to Gaming Intelligence, “Numis has increased Optimal’s price target from 500 pence per share to 600 pence, as it believes that the company’s share price has ‘further to go’ despite its very strong recent share price performance.” Shares of Optimal Payments, which are traded in London, were fetching just south of 500 pence as of the close of business on Monday.

We’ll keep you posted on this developing story right here on PocketFives.

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