Antigua-based Blanca Games, a firm set up by Bingomania founder Stuart Gordon, has bought the Cereus network and its UB.com and Absolute Poker brands from its owners Tokwiro Enterprises.

The deal will see Blanca games acquire all network operations, software, the absolutepoker.com brand, and the ub.com brand from Tokwiro for an undisclosed sum.

Stuart Gordon, chief executive officer of Blanca Games, said the deal was a major opportunity for the newly estbalished firm.

'From our perspective, we have acquired a large, sophisticated online gaming operation with state-of-the art capabilities, ranging from compliance to business intelligence to online marketing to customer service.

'We see a tremendous growth opportunity in this deal and beyond, as Blanca seeks additional acquisitions in the market.'

Blanca Games is a company set up by Bingomania founder Gordon specifically to acquire onling gaming properties and has already been approved by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission to operate the Cereus sites.

There is no current expectation for changes in the current staffing or operations of the Cereus sites, with the deal merely being a passing of ownership from Joe Norton to Stuart Gordon.

Both UB and Absolute have been troubled by cheating scandals in the past two years, and the deal could be seen as a way of distancing the sites further from this.

Gordon was careful not to criticise the site's security record, but did hint that an increased focus on security would be a focus under the new ownership.

'Although we are impressed with many of the new security features on the Network today, security is and will remain our top priority,' Gordon said.

'We're also pleased with the efficiency and the player-friendly approach of Cereus customer service operation, but we will always be seeking toimprove in this area,' he added.

Bingomania is one of the largest bingo sites on the Parlay Network and has been in operation since the late 1990s.