PropSwap hopes for ‘good karma’ on NCAA futures

PropSwap, a secondary market based in Las Vegas for bettors to buy and sell futures tickets, is counting on “good karma” to help buyers who bought NCAA Tournament futures through the website that are now virtually worthless.

PropSwap suspended all transactions Thursday after nearly all major sporting events were canceled or postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Bettors who purchased tickets through PropSwap were left in the lurch when the NCAA Tournament was canceled. For example, one ticket posted on Twitter was a $300 bet on Butler to win the tournament at 500-1, paying $150,000. A buyer paid $1,775 for the ticket, but will now be able to recoup only the $300 original bet when it is cashed at a casino.

PropSwap co-founder Luke Pergande said the company would return its 10 percent fee on each college basketball transaction to the buyers. PropSwap is also urging sellers to welcome “good karma” by paying back buyers, though it is within their rights to keep the money.

“We don’t think anyone should be profit-focused in a time like this,” Pergande said.

And some sellers have responded, he said. He estimated that buyers have been paid back in part or in full in about 20 percent of the around 1,000 college basketball transactions made on the website this season.

“I’ve been extremely happy with the response from both sides,” he said. “The buyers have been incredibly reasonable.”

Pergande said he did not think this crisis would hurt the site in the long run and that bettors would recognize the extreme circumstances created by the coronavirus response.

Contact Jim Barnes at jbarnes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0277. Follow @JimBarnesLV on Twitter.