\u201cI was seduced into a viciously dependent position with the gambling companies,\u201d he said. \u201cIt got out of hand. Their cunning techniques drained my last penny on that trip.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to draw attention to the issue, I question the big banks that invest in these gaming companies,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\n
The same year, Holknekt published a press release claiming that through \u201cdeep data analysis\u201d he had discovered a \u201cwide range of control deficiencies and irregularities in how [Unibet] examines and exploits its customers\u2019 gambling addiction,\u201d which he threatened to expose.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\nIn response, a spokesperson for Unibet told Swedish business publication Resum\u00e9<\/em> that the company complied with licensing regulations.<\/p>\n“We do not shy away from discussions that are based on facts,\u201d the spokesperson said.\u00a0\u201cBut we do not respond to direct threats or blackmail.\u00a0It is a form of communication that we avoid.\u201d<\/p>\n
From Busto to Big Brother <\/strong><\/h2>\nHolknekt has never been shy about discussing his addictions. He initially found fame as a professional skateboarder in the 1980s, when he also launched a skater clothing brand and a magazine devoted to the sport.<\/p>\n
But by the late 1990s, he was a washed-up alcoholic who had lost everything, and supported himself by selling a street newspaper.<\/p>\n
\n
By 2000, now sober, he finished fifth in the first season of Sweden\u2019s Big Brother <\/em>reality TV show.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\nShortly afterwards, he began working with fashion designer Karin Jimfelt-Ghatan, and the pair launched Odd Molly in 2002, a venture that made him wealthy.<\/p>\n
As such, he was one of Unibet\u2019s VIP customers, and plied with incentives to keep playing, according to the filing.<\/p>\n
Unibet has declined to comment on the lawsuit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Swedish fashion retail tycoon is suing Unibet parent the Kindred Group for SEK10.2 million (US$1 million). That\u2019s the amount he claims he lost playing on Unibet while in the throes of gambling addiction. A lawsuit filed in the Stockholm District Court this week on behalf of Odd Molly founder Per Holknekt, 62, says the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":223736,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,60],"tags":[82072,82074,82075,82076,82073],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Swedish Fashion Tycoon Sues Kindred Group for $1 Million<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n